THE JOURNAL
Meet Gerald Charles, The Lesser-Known Legacy Of Legendary Watch Designer Mr Gérald Genta
It would be an exaggeration to describe Mr Gérald Genta as a household name. But if any member of your own household claims more than a passing interest in horology, then he or she will have encountered the celebrated watch designer this year.
As well as marking the 50th anniversary of one of Genta’s best-known creations, the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, 2022 is also the year in which his widow, Evelyne, has released onto the market 100 of her late husband’s drawings, each accompanied by its own non-fungible token.
Among the 100 meticulously executed renderings are those for the Royal Oak, as well as other Genta classics, such as the Patek Philippe Nautilus and the famous Mickey Mouse watches produced by the Gérald Genta brand.
Few people know that Genta founded a final dial marque in 2000, little more than a decade before his death in August 2011. Using his middle name, he called it Gerald Charles and set out to build it into a watch house that perfectly encapsulated his meticulous attention to detail and dogged pursuit of quality, along with his undeniably audacious approach to design.
He created distinct case shapes, which, while ensuring Gerald Charles watches are instantly recognisable from a distance, also pose a challenge for lesser artisans to fill – which goes some way to explaining why he remained designer-in-chief after he sold the company in 2003.
Today, Gerald Charles is run by 26-year-old CEO Mr Federico Ziviani, who has expressed his determination to take the brand forward while respecting the Genta style. He also vows to keep production numbers below 2,000 pieces per year in order to maintain its kudos among serious collectors. It’s an output that’s already leading to some serious competition among buyers as the power of the “Genta effect” continues to spread.
Available in Premier 2021 three-hand and chronograph form and GC 2.0 and GC 3.0 ultra-thin models (three-hand and chronograph respectively), the range is based around the original Maestro case shape conceived by Genta at the turn of the millennium.
Featuring a signature “smile” at six o’clock, the complex, eight-edged design comprises no fewer than 18 components and features distinctive strap lugs that are individually screwed to the central body. Steel and gold cases are available, along with a choice of blue, black or green dials.
Emphasising the unusual nature of the brand, there is also a new GC Sport model made from grade five titanium that, at a gossamer 50g, weighs 40 per cent less than the steel version, is just 8mm thick and carries its winding crown on the left to keep it out of the way while playing sports such as tennis and golf. The feature is already being put to good use by, among others, brand ambassador Jenson “JT” Brooksby, the US tennis star ranked number 36 in the world.
In all cases, the watches are carried on distinctive and practical soft rubber straps stamped with a clous de Paris, or hobnail, pattern – a design created by Genta and only previously seen on his Gerald Charles Renaissance watches.
“Despite its complex and outwardly delicate appearance, the Maestro 8.0 Squelette is designed for everyday use and is even water resistant down to an impressive 100m”
In a further bid to continue Genta’s legacy, Gerald Charles recently recruited a designer to create an extra-special, limited production watch aimed at high-end connoisseurs. Mr Octavio Garcia comes to the brand with the distinction of having been the man charged by Audemars Piguet with the delicate task of refreshing Genta’s original design for the Royal Oak Jumbo in order to bring it gently into the 21st century.
After a 12-year stint as Audemars Piguet’s design manager, Garcia struck out on his own more than a decade ago and, as a long-standing friend of the Ziviani family, was a shoo-in to design the special Maestro 8.0 Squelette piece, no more than 100 of which will be made per year.
Pared down to the nth degree, the dial side of the watch reveals skeletonised bridges that are either satin finished, rhodium plated or anthracite NAC treated, while every angle and bevel is hand-polished and all wheels circular grained on either side. The rehaut, meanwhile (that’s the inner ring between the dial and the crystal), is retained by a series of nine star-shaped screws that were designed and developed specifically for Gerald Charles and will remain unique to the house.
Despite its complex and outwardly delicate appearance, Gerald Charles says the Maestro 8.0 Squelette is designed for everyday use and is even water resistant down to an impressive 100m. It’s said to be a foundation model both for further high horology Gerald Charles watches and for the direction of the brand as a whole. Further down the line, Ziviani says, he has designs that go beyond the Maestro shape – Genta was nothing if not prolific – but for now, a “master” foundation is not a bad place to start.