Finding new icons is difficult, but in front of the Gae Aulenti-designed Louis Vuitton Monterey, we could say we’ve hit the jackpot!
Louis Vuitton began the journey into watchmaking officially in 2002 with the creation of the Tambour, but actually the first steps into this world were taken together with the famous Italian architect Gae Aulenti and the Swiss brand IWC, for the creation of the Monterey in 1988.
We have often seen it on the wrist of Jean Arnault, current Director of Marketing for Louis Vuitton Watchmaking (and proponent of the Daniel Roth revival), who inspired us in telling you about this possible future watchmaking icon.
When talking about the French brand, watches will not be the first item to jump to mind. Being a fashion brand, one will imagine a Keepall, a Trunk with the LV monogram or an item of clothing. Nevertheless, recently we have noticed a willingness to become a player in the haute horlogerie sector as well, no longer just in fashion.
The design of Gae Aulenti: one of the most important Italian architects ever
Born in December 1927, Gae Aulenti (a pseudonym for Gaetana Emilia Aulenti) was among the most celebrated designers and architects ever.
In the late 1980s she was in Paris for one of the most important projects of her career, namely the transformation of the Gare d’Orsay into the Musée d’Orsay, which earned her the Legion d’Honneur. The latter is the highest honor bestowed by the French state. We like to imagine that the history of the Monterey originated in those very years, although we have no concrete certainty.
What has always distinguished his works is his nonconformity, which we can find in his table with wheels, his bat lamp, and finally in his two clocks.
Versions of the Louis Vuitton Monterey
The development of the two watches was entrusted to the Maison IWC.
Monterey I in gold with world-time, moon phase, alarm and date.
The first version, the one most worn even by Gae Aulenti herself, is the Monterey I. A watch without lugs where the strap fits perfectly under the case. Aesthetically it may recall some pocket timepieces with crowns at 12 o’clock that were converted to wristwatches.
What makes it interesting is its complexity and myriad functions that, despite the quartz caliber, make it a super-complicated watch. We have the world time function with the classic layout designed by Louis Cottier with an external disk and all the various city time zones.
Alarm function set by crown and with a hand to indicate when it is set. Hours and minutes with red skeleton syringe hands, seconds in the center with a blued hand. This explanation is very brief, but we have summarized the whole in-depth discussion below
We have reported all the function indications thanks to the explanation from The Watch Forum UK.
A. 18 kt. gold watch case
B. Multifunction crown for:
“setting the red hour and minute hands
“setting the phases of the moon
“setting time zone (city)
“stopping the second hand
C. Universal time correction key
D. Date corrector
- Red-hours hand for local hour
1a. Circle for local hours(12 ore) - Red minutes-hand for local time, second time zone and universal time (24 hours)
2a. minutes and seconds scale - Seconds-hand
- Date hand
4a. Date scale - Moon phase indication
- Golden hours-hand for the second time zone
6a. Red index identifying second time zone. - 24-Hours disc with day and night indicator on transparent sapphire (universal-time)
- 24 time zones indicated by the corresponding name of the city, managed by the crown at 12 o’ clock.
8a. Prime meridian indicator, Greenwich time zone (GMT) - Date indicator
9a. Auxiliary indicator on the 24 hours disc (7) to determine the date
Monterey II ceramic with hours, minutes, alarm and date
The Monterey II is among the earliest Louis Vuitton watches. This example is less complicated than its predecessor. We immediately notice the main difference in the black ceramic case, an extremely futuristic feature compared to the time of conception. It is a solution that IWC was exploring through some of its watches in the Da Vinci collection.
The dial layout remains similar, but precisely with fewer complications, still with a quartz caliber. We have hours, minutes, alarm and peripheral date, all set by the crown, with no buttons on the sides.
The 37mm case has, as in the Monterey I, a crown at 12 o’clock, signed with the LV monogram.
In the photo below of Bukowski we can finally admire the set that came with the purchase of the watch in the late 1980s, with two additional straps, a cloth, and the original box.
The market price of the Louis Vuitton Monterey I and II
Among the posts and comments, many of you asked us what a current estimate might be for the Louis Vuitton Monterey–the answer? Hard to say. Currently there have been no examples for sale for several years, on the web you can find prices as low as USD 200.00 and others more recently around USD 1,800.00. According to our estimates it could be in a range close to USD 2,000.00 for the Monterey I and USD 1,000.00 for the Monterey II.
They do not represent correct or accurate figures, but simply a rough estimate of what today’s market might be, given its future popularity.
Final remarks
Louis Vuitton watches have changed a great deal since Gae Aulenti’s first Monterey I. After years of more fashion-related style, it seems that the brand is trying to get back to basics in terms of savoir-faire, shapes, and complications. Already the Spin-Time model is an interesting step toward complicated watchmaking, but with an understated and traditional style.
The initiative for independent creations together with La Fabrique du Temps and the relaunch of Daniel Roth are all hopeful news
What do you think? Will it reach the level of Status Symbol so much dodged by Gae Aulenti herself?
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