Independent watchmaking seems to be in an ascendency that shows no sign of stopping. But, it has split into two very distinct poles. On one end you have the classical horologists like Laurent Ferrier, F.P. Journe, and Biver, creating gorgeous traditional watches. On the other you have the iconoclasts, the groundbreakers that, while sometimes divisive always make a splash. It’s among that latter group, the MB&Fs and Urwerks of the world that Vanguart is more than ready to take their place. While the brand was founded in 2017 by a watch-loving quartet of experts Axel Leuenberger, Mehmet Koruturk, Jérémy Freléchox, and Thierry Fischer the story of Vanguart actually starts long before the brand ever existed with a watch that caused quite a lot of buzz: the Black Hole.
“We didn’t actually know Thierry back then,” explains Axel, “but we did get the buzz around the watch. So, when we finally met, it just clicked: you’re the guy behind the Black Hole! And ten years later, we had the opportunity to make it a reality.”
If you’re wondering why it didn’t become a reality sooner than that, that’s because the Black Hole wasn’t really meant to be built or at least, that wasn’t its main reason for being. Thierry is an industrial designer first and foremost and actually designed it for his diploma a decade before Vanguart became a reality. And just look at the thing, constantly rotating rings orbiting around a central tourbillon surrounded by sci-fi racing lines. It’s out-of-this-world in more ways than one, including, practically.
“When I was first designing the Black Hole,” says Thierry of the process, “I didn’t have the knowledge I have today. I didn’t understand how to meet the physical constraints of watchmaking, especially the movements. To me, it was an incredible idea; it was up to Axel and Jeremy to make it work.”
Speaking of Axel, between himself and co-founder Jérémy Freléchox, you couldn’t ask for a better pair of watchmakers to get stuff done. Both are veterans of those four mythical letters, APRP, or Audemars Piguet Renaud et Papi. The legendary movement development studio has alumni scattered across the watch world, like A. Lange & Sohne’s Tony de Haas, the Brothers Gronefeld. Robert Greubel, Stephen Forsey, and Christophe Claret. So, when they get excited about a project, you know there’s something in there and they were very excited about the Black Hole.
“The case is very special,” says Axel. “Every shape is designed like a car. There are no straight lines, all curves, and when you pass the light and see it moving over the watch it’s incredible, a mix of sporty, futuristic and artisan.”
It’s hard not to look at the Black Hole and imagine a serious horological pedigree behind it. Nobody would doubt you if you told them it was an MB&F for its curvaceous asymmetry and unique approach to time. Where many independent watchmakers struggle with their sophomore album – especially when it hit such a stride as the Black Hole that wasn’t the case for Thierry.
“Honestly, the second project was easier. Everything about the Black Hole is atypical and transferring those design codes to something that actually has hands, is actually symmetrical, that idea made it easier than staring at a blank page.”
Not that he’s been making things any easier on Axel and Jérémy over the years, of course. That’s one of the benefits of coming from a non-watch background of course, coming at things from a completely new perspective and not constantly bow to the whims of time and space. Nor does Thierry ever aim to hit the finished target first time.
“It’s never a case of drawing a finished watch,” says Thierry. “It’s more about how what I draw, the ideas I put to paper, can be translated into a watch. That’s my favourite part of the process, working with Axel to figure out how or even if we can make it work.”
Obviously, the question then is, does it always work? “I have to say no all the time!” says Axel. “But there’s often some serendipity too. You need to take a step back and thing right, how can we address this? You end up finding a completely different approach, something new and cool. Sometimes the challenges lead to something better than we were expecting.”
That’s how you end up with Orb, Vanguart’s 2024 follow-up. And indeed, it’s closer to a traditional watch than the Black Hole, but in the same way that the UK is closer to Switzerland than it is Japan. Sure, it’s geographically on the same continent, but they’re still very different countries. It has hands, a rounded shape and recognisable features, but there’s nothing ‘traditional’ about Orb. It treads the same aesthetic footprint of automotive-flavour futurism, big, bold and very obviously an incredible piece of horology. Baby’s first FlikFlak this is not. In Axel’s words, “we make watches for people that have everything. A Vanguart is never going to be someone’s first watch.”
I mean, you could buy a Black Hole or Orb as your debut timepiece, but given the esotericism inbuilt into watches like this and the fact that Vanguart currently make just 100 pieces a year it’s unlikely you’ll even know about them until you’re in too deep. That all said, once you’re at this level, there’s plenty to appreciate about what Vanguart do. “Collectors look at brands like Audemars Piguet and Richard Mille,” says Axel, “watchmakers that are both sporty and amazingly finished, hitting both types of watch and both types of collectors. That’s where we want to be. We’re part-way there already, we have two points along an axis in the Black Hole and Orb. But we need the third so people can triangulate what we’re all about.”
That third plot on the graph won’t be with us until 2026 at the earliest, so don’t hold your breath quite yet. What you can look forward to are new editions of both watches currently in the Vanguart stable. We’re sworn to secrecy on details, but Vanguart’s future is looking very interesting. In fact, Axel puts it best: “I believe the future is something we can put into a watch. So that’s what we do.”
More details at Vanguart.
Oracle Time