While Louis Erard certainly create solid, swiss watches, they are not known for heavily stylised, boundary-pushing designs. Their watches tend to lean on traditional looks and layouts, sometimes with a contemporary twist but rarely anything to write home about.
So, when they announced the release of a regulator created in partnership with Alan Silberstein last year, the watch world had a field day. Employing Silberstein’s colourful, Bauhaus-meets-constructivism style, their traditional regulator design was transformed into something incredibly cool.
Nearly a year on from the launch and Louis Erard has announced a second unlikely partnership, this time with master watchmaker Vianney Halter. If you are not familiar with Halter’s work, his creations lean on a ‘Future Past’ lore, imagining what 19th century horological creations would look like if they were created in the distant future. The epitome of this being his GPHG winning Deep Space Tourbillon, which features a tiple-axis central tourbillon at the centre of the heavily domed design. Simply put, it looks like a horological spaceship for the wrist.
The base for this collab is the same regulator watch given the Silberstein treatment last year and while not as marvellous as his in-house creations it’s certainly interesting. First of all, if you are not familiar with a regulator watch, simply put it’s a design based on regulator clocks of the 19th century which we’re used as a Master Clock to set other clocks against. Generally, this means the hours, minutes and seconds are separated, with the minutes given the starring role on the periphery of the dial, making setting other clocks to it that much easier.
This new watch sticks to this traditional layout , but the dial is given a futurist, multi-level makeover courtesy of Halter. The two large, sunken subdials sit at the centre and are outlined by a raised brushed-silver plate, forming the motif of a figure of eight and extending to cover the entirety of the outer dial. A matte grey granulated texture is used to mark the centre of each subdial and small triangles of the same texture sit above and below the co-signed plaques featuring each of the brands’ respective logos.
Hammering home the steampunk vibe are the railway tracks used on the minutes, hours and seconds which draw inspiration from Vianney Halter’s childhood as the son of a train conductor in Paris, while also making it easy to read the watch accurately.
The hands are cut from blued steel and use a fountain pen style for the hours and minutes, while the second hand is simpler, with a small counterbalance. The case made from stainless steel, is highly polished and measures 42mm in diameter with a thickness of 12.25mm.
To keep the cost accessible, the movement used is an automatic Sellita SW266-1 which beats at 28,800vph, has a 38-hour power reserve and is finished with a custom, skeletonised Louis Erard Rotor viewable through the open caseback.
Overall the watch isn’t the home run that the Silberstein collab was but the accessible price of CHF 3,500 gives fans of Vianney Halter the chance to own one of his creation, which is pretty cool considering the rarity of his designs. Available on a blue Nubuck calf leather strap, the collab will be limited to just 178 pieces so get your order in quickly.
Price & Specs:
Model: Le Régulateur Louis Erard x Vianney Halter
Ref: 85237AA51
Case/Dial: 42mm diameter, polished stainless steel, domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective treatment on both sides, movement visible through the transparent caseback
Water Resistance: 50m (5 bar)
Movement: Calibre Sellita SW266-1, automatic, 31 jewels
Frequency: 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
Power reserve: 38h
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds
Strap: Oceania blue calf nubuck leather
Price/availability: CHF 3,500, limited to 178 pieces
More details at Louis Erard.
