Rewrite
It all began, as so many modern obsessions do, with a Netflix documentary. When Piaget’s creative team embarked on their partnership with the Andy Warhol Foundation, they faced a monumental task: how to capture the spirit of the 20th century’s most recognisable artist without resorting to cliché?
After a six-month deep dive of “immersing ourselves in his work, visiting a nearby exhibition, reading books [and] watching the documentary,” the team was still searching for its angle. The obvious icons – the soup can, the banana, Marilyn Monroe – were all on the table, but they felt too literal. This is the exact challenge Stéphanie Sivrière, Director of Piaget’s design studio for Jewellery, High Jewellery and Watchmaking, lives for. Her mission, she says, is “to inspire dreams in order to stir emotions.”
For over 150 years, Piaget has epitomised daring creativity, a quality that began with Georges-Édouard Piaget crafting high-precision movements in 1874. This foundation in technical excellence – pioneered by its renowned ultra-thin movements – allowed the Maison to become a true innovator in high watchmaking and jewellery. Operating from the Ateliers de l’Extraordinaire, Piaget harnesses rare skills, transforming gold and precious gems into precious works of art, marrying the delicate, often intangible beauty of artistic crafts with the brilliance of precision.
The current ‘Collage’ limited edition is the latest step in a partnership with the Andy Warhol Foundation, which began in 2024. This partnership revived the iconic cushion-shaped model that Warhol favoured, resulting in a wider Andy Warhol Watch collection. The collection includes variants with vibrant, signature Piaget stone dials in materials such as Tiger’s Eye, Malachite and Opal, as well as models in Black Onyx and ‘Clou de Paris’.
This dedication to combining technical rigour with artistic freedom is precisely why Sivrière was so keen to find a non-obvious entry point into the world of Andy Warhol. “We quickly learned that we wanted to express Warhol, but without being obvious. To suggest, rather than to show,” Sivrière reveals. The team even worked with the Foundation to sift through the noise, learning “which collabs were authentic or fake, as you can find a lot of things online.” Then, they found their muse. “After a while, we started being obsessed by the Collage series as it’s less known and I loved the idea of playing with the shape of the collage and not being literal.”
Warhol, a compulsive collector of both trivial and exquisite objects, amassed a collection of over 300 watches by the time of his death. Seven of these were Piagets. His connection to the brand was authentic, culminating in the 1973 purchase of his most recognisable timepiece: the iconic, cushion-shaped 15102 watch. That very model, later nicknamed the ‘Black Tie,’ provides the canvas for this new limited edition.
After all, blending exuberant art with profound technical mastery is pure Piaget style. The Maison’s watchmaking DNA is extraordinarily rich and complex, built on a legendary expertise in ultra-thin movements. This mastery, as Sivrière notes, “enable[s] us to create both pared-down timepieces and exuberant models.”
Sivrière saw this as the perfect opportunity to deploy the Maison’s full spirit, reviving a rare craft to create an exceptional experience. Instead of a printed dial, Piaget employed one of its most cherished and difficult métiers d’art: stone marquetry. This was, perhaps, the team’s greatest challenge since they had to transform a classical craft into modern Pop Art.
The team sourced a precise palette to echo the artwork’s hues: black onyx (the same colour as Warhol’s own 1973 watch), pink opal, green chrysoprase and a uniquely textured yellow Namibian serpentine. For Sivrière, this search is a personal joy. While she admits to a preference for blue stones like indicolite tourmaline and emeralds from Zambia or Colombia, she describes associating various gems as a “moving and wonderful endeavour.”
“We also spent some time finding the right stones to match the hues on the artwork,” she says. “I love how Namibian serpentine brings some density and texture to the dial.” This process is fraught with technical difficulty. “It’s always challenging to do a marqueterie and reproduce 50 dials as each stone is incredibly thin and fragile.”
The goal, according to Sivrière, was to walk a fine line: “The challenge was to be bold but not too bold at the same time.” Finding the perfect combination wasn’t a simple case of matching colours. It was an artistic pursuit, a search for an elusive feeling. “You have to see the stone yourself, try the combination […]. Then it’s a question of harmony and this is very atypical,” Sivrière says. “Harmony can happen by chance, it can be daring or safe, that’s the moment of magic. Something you achieve, without even realising how it works.”
The entire timepiece is layered with personal tributes. The 45mm case is crafted from 18-carat yellow gold, a metal not currently used in the contemporary Andy Warhol Watch collection. And the reason was purely sentimental.
“Most of the contemporary Warhols are in white or pink gold,” Sivrière notes. “I really wanted to go back to yellow gold as this is the material he has picked for his in 1973. It does bring an emotional connection that was important for us. An homage.”
Even the dial’s abstract design contains a ‘secret’ nod to the artist’s process. “The top corner of the Namibian serpentine being broken like the Polaroid. That’s my favourite detail.” This intentional imperfection ensures that all 50 dials will have different dots in the Namibian serpentine, making it very unique.
This artistic homage is powered by precision mechanics. Inside the case, Piaget has installed its in-house 501P1 self-winding mechanical calibre, a slimline power unit with a 40-hour power reserve. While the movement is hidden, the solid 18-carat yellow gold caseback is a collectible piece of art in its own right: it features a vertical satin finish overlaid with an engraved rendition of the very self-portrait that inspired the dial, complete with Piaget’s logo and Warhol’s signature. The watch is finished on a green leather strap, a rich, mature colour chosen specifically to add to the palette without distracting from the dial.
With only 50 examples being made, the ‘Collage’ is undeniably exclusive. But Sivrière is quick to point out that for her team, rarity does not change the level of dedication.
“Weirdly enough, I put the same energy and level of care in all categories,” she claims. “At Piaget, we often use the same material or craftsmanship for different products. Typically Decor Palace or ornamental stone dials, you can find it in a Limelight Gala watch or in a High Jewellery watch.”
And what’s next for the collaboration? What other dimensions of Warhol’s vast legacy does Piaget hope to explore? Sivrière is coy, offering only a simple: “Stay tuned for this part!”
Discover the Collage limited edition watch here.
photography. courtesy of Piaget (still life), Dennis Whitehead (Getty)
words. Gennaro Costanzo
in HTML format, including tags, to make it appealing and easy to read for Japanese-speaking readers aged 20 to 40 interested in fashion. Organize the content with appropriate headings and subheadings (h1, h2, h3, h4, h5, h6), translating all text, including headings, into Japanese. Retain any existing
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It all began, as so many modern obsessions do, with a Netflix documentary. When Piaget’s creative team embarked on their partnership with the Andy Warhol Foundation, they faced a monumental task: how to capture the spirit of the 20th century’s most recognisable artist without resorting to cliché?
After a six-month deep dive of “immersing ourselves in his work, visiting a nearby exhibition, reading books [and] watching the documentary,” the team was still searching for its angle. The obvious icons – the soup can, the banana, Marilyn Monroe – were all on the table, but they felt too literal. This is the exact challenge Stéphanie Sivrière, Director of Piaget’s design studio for Jewellery, High Jewellery and Watchmaking, lives for. Her mission, she says, is “to inspire dreams in order to stir emotions.”
For over 150 years, Piaget has epitomised daring creativity, a quality that began with Georges-Édouard Piaget crafting high-precision movements in 1874. This foundation in technical excellence – pioneered by its renowned ultra-thin movements – allowed the Maison to become a true innovator in high watchmaking and jewellery. Operating from the Ateliers de l’Extraordinaire, Piaget harnesses rare skills, transforming gold and precious gems into precious works of art, marrying the delicate, often intangible beauty of artistic crafts with the brilliance of precision.
The current ‘Collage’ limited edition is the latest step in a partnership with the Andy Warhol Foundation, which began in 2024. This partnership revived the iconic cushion-shaped model that Warhol favoured, resulting in a wider Andy Warhol Watch collection. The collection includes variants with vibrant, signature Piaget stone dials in materials such as Tiger’s Eye, Malachite and Opal, as well as models in Black Onyx and ‘Clou de Paris’.
This dedication to combining technical rigour with artistic freedom is precisely why Sivrière was so keen to find a non-obvious entry point into the world of Andy Warhol. “We quickly learned that we wanted to express Warhol, but without being obvious. To suggest, rather than to show,” Sivrière reveals. The team even worked with the Foundation to sift through the noise, learning “which collabs were authentic or fake, as you can find a lot of things online.” Then, they found their muse. “After a while, we started being obsessed by the Collage series as it’s less known and I loved the idea of playing with the shape of the collage and not being literal.”
Warhol, a compulsive collector of both trivial and exquisite objects, amassed a collection of over 300 watches by the time of his death. Seven of these were Piagets. His connection to the brand was authentic, culminating in the 1973 purchase of his most recognisable timepiece: the iconic, cushion-shaped 15102 watch. That very model, later nicknamed the ‘Black Tie,’ provides the canvas for this new limited edition.
After all, blending exuberant art with profound technical mastery is pure Piaget style. The Maison’s watchmaking DNA is extraordinarily rich and complex, built on a legendary expertise in ultra-thin movements. This mastery, as Sivrière notes, “enable[s] us to create both pared-down timepieces and exuberant models.”
Sivrière saw this as the perfect opportunity to deploy the Maison’s full spirit, reviving a rare craft to create an exceptional experience. Instead of a printed dial, Piaget employed one of its most cherished and difficult métiers d’art: stone marquetry. This was, perhaps, the team’s greatest challenge since they had to transform a classical craft into modern Pop Art.
The team sourced a precise palette to echo the artwork’s hues: black onyx (the same colour as Warhol’s own 1973 watch), pink opal, green chrysoprase and a uniquely textured yellow Namibian serpentine. For Sivrière, this search is a personal joy. While she admits to a preference for blue stones like indicolite tourmaline and emeralds from Zambia or Colombia, she describes associating various gems as a “moving and wonderful endeavour.”
“We also spent some time finding the right stones to match the hues on the artwork,” she says. “I love how Namibian serpentine brings some density and texture to the dial.” This process is fraught with technical difficulty. “It’s always challenging to do a marqueterie and reproduce 50 dials as each stone is incredibly thin and fragile.”
The goal, according to Sivrière, was to walk a fine line: “The challenge was to be bold but not too bold at the same time.” Finding the perfect combination wasn’t a simple case of matching colours. It was an artistic pursuit, a search for an elusive feeling. “You have to see the stone yourself, try the combination […]. Then it’s a question of harmony and this is very atypical,” Sivrière says. “Harmony can happen by chance, it can be daring or safe, that’s the moment of magic. Something you achieve, without even realising how it works.”
The entire timepiece is layered with personal tributes. The 45mm case is crafted from 18-carat yellow gold, a metal not currently used in the contemporary Andy Warhol Watch collection. And the reason was purely sentimental.
“Most of the contemporary Warhols are in white or pink gold,” Sivrière notes. “I really wanted to go back to yellow gold as this is the material he has picked for his in 1973. It does bring an emotional connection that was important for us. An homage.”
Even the dial’s abstract design contains a ‘secret’ nod to the artist’s process. “The top corner of the Namibian serpentine being broken like the Polaroid. That’s my favourite detail.” This intentional imperfection ensures that all 50 dials will have different dots in the Namibian serpentine, making it very unique.
This artistic homage is powered by precision mechanics. Inside the case, Piaget has installed its in-house 501P1 self-winding mechanical calibre, a slimline power unit with a 40-hour power reserve. While the movement is hidden, the solid 18-carat yellow gold caseback is a collectible piece of art in its own right: it features a vertical satin finish overlaid with an engraved rendition of the very self-portrait that inspired the dial, complete with Piaget’s logo and Warhol’s signature. The watch is finished on a green leather strap, a rich, mature colour chosen specifically to add to the palette without distracting from the dial.
With only 50 examples being made, the ‘Collage’ is undeniably exclusive. But Sivrière is quick to point out that for her team, rarity does not change the level of dedication.
“Weirdly enough, I put the same energy and level of care in all categories,” she claims. “At Piaget, we often use the same material or craftsmanship for different products. Typically Decor Palace or ornamental stone dials, you can find it in a Limelight Gala watch or in a High Jewellery watch.”
And what’s next for the collaboration? What other dimensions of Warhol’s vast legacy does Piaget hope to explore? Sivrière is coy, offering only a simple: “Stay tuned for this part!”
Discover the Collage limited edition watch here.
photography. courtesy of Piaget (still life), Dennis Whitehead (Getty)
words. Gennaro Costanzo
and integrate them seamlessly into the new content without adding new tags. Ensure the new content is fashion-related, written entirely in Japanese, and approximately 1500 words. Conclude with a “結論” section and a well-formatted “よくある質問” section. Avoid including an introduction or a note explaining the process.
