Patek Philippe Tokyo Exhibition Review
Patek Philippe, the famous watch brand that invented the keyless winding system, has started their 2023 Patek Philippe Exhibition in Tokyo! Originally planned for 2021, Patek Philippe delayed this exhibition until 2023 due to the pandemic. This event was ...
Great article, thank you for compiling!
Almost makes me sad that I was in Japan a few months ago ...
You should've come back!
There's nothing wrong with visiting Japan multiple times in a short span!
I totally agree, if it wasn't for the fact that I was in California only last week...
I would have totally done that. I love Japan more than any other country
Thanks for the wonderful report from the Exhibition, Patrick! As usual, a wealth of information for our members beautifully written in your lively, competent, informative style --- once again, I couldn't be more grateful for your work for our forum! :-)
Even the pictures you took are amazing, when it's virtually an impossible task to take decent photos in these situations! ;-)) I promoted this thread to our Editors Picks, so our members from all over the world can get to live the Exhibit through your wor...
Thank you FabR for the kind words!
Thank you FabR for your kind words. The event was very challenging, as the press did not have a "press only" time for the exhibition. But I was very fortunate to speak with a lot of special individuals at Patek Philippe, including the Technical Director, ...
Superb article, mon ami.
As for the Grande Complication, it only misses a Tourbillon to be a true one, but we are close. I am more intrigued by the World Time, I must confess. I hope to be able to see it in real! Thank you so much for this very interesting article, my dear Patric...
Merci, mon ami.
The purple World Time wasn't purplish enough for me. I would've liked to have seen it with more color. When I made this comment, one lady joked that men are more color blind than women - but then a second lady remarked it was a black watch with purple sti...
Oh! Thank you mon ami.
I meant that it's the first date that will go backwards on a Louis Cottier style World Time timepiece. Do you think that is accurate? I do believe that's what someone at Patek Philippe's offices told me - although I can't seem to find the exact words they...
Thank you for this super interesting article, Patrick!
The WT with date starts to haunt me… Best Thomas
Thank you MTR for your kind words! I'm trying to make it interesting and let you have a feel for what the event is like...
I wrote this to Amanico: The purple World Time wasn't purplish enough for me. I would've liked to have seen it with more color. When I made this comment, one lady joked that men are more color blind than women - but then a second lady remarked it was a bl...
Thank you!
Thank you so much for this, living in Stockholm doesn’t provide opportunities to see exhibits like this. Will travel to one one day I hope!
A noble goal of these exhibits is to bring Patek Philippe (and, by extension, high horology) to various regions of the world, where local people with no access to the Museum or Manufacture can live a nearly comparable experience in their own countries!
Given the ever-increasing success of these events, Patek Philippe will continue to offer them periodically, and I'm sure one day they will reach beautiful Sweden as well! Cheers.
A very noble goal indeed!
I'm really proud with the vision that Theirry Stern has for these events. These events are costly but ultimately a GREAT business decision as they really educate people about the art of watchmaking, and it gets people excited about the various arts that g...
Indeed, very much in agreement on the importance these Grand Exhibitions have for the world of horology at large, given Mr. Stern and Patek's broadly recognized leadership of this industry.
I find it highly commendable for Patek to decide to embark upon such a challenging (and in more than one sense, expensive!) educational mission, even more so on a regular basis... The great success of these events --- both among existing collectors and th...
Exactly.
No brand puts on such an extensive show like this one! Not even AP, VC, nor Breguet! Patek Philippe is in a sole position here. And it really does benefit the entire industry. Not everyone at this show liked Patek Philippe watches, but those who didn't li...
+1, while Patek is obviously aware of the responsibilities that come with being at the top of its field, I'm glad that it takes these responsibilities extremely seriously...to an extent that probably only an independent, family-run company can do! ;-)
The whole horological world is no doubt much better off because of these Grand Exhibitions! Cheers.
Maybe they'll have it one day in Stockholm!
That'd be a good idea! Since I've never been Stockholm! It'd be a good excuse to visit Stockholm! I'm sure Patek Philippe targets safer cities and cities with tremendous interest in their product. Stockholm might be a good candidate!
Those Samurai pieces are truly exquisite!
My favorite here is the same as yours - the Ellipse with the close-up of a soldier and his katana, in wood marquetry!! Thanks a bunch for such an excellent write-up .... Cheers, Filip
Thank you for the details FabR!
Jérôme Boutteçon really made an amazing piece! My favorite wood marquetry piece ever. I like it even more than the Indian chief and the Eagle he did for the New York exhibit (and those were super complex).
My pleasure, even if for me that is (perhaps) JB's *second* favorite piece ever.... :-))))
Ref. 5089G-020 "Lakeside Scenes" (produced for the 175th Anniversary). Pic taken in Italy today, it will be my companion for a big Patek event later this week ...
I agree! There's a Kabuki/Japanese Opera theme to this piece.
The white wood was a surprise and I totally thought it was enamel until I had a second look. I really like it. The other Ellipse is one I liked as well - but the odd thing is that there's no focal point. You're not focusing on the blue background, not foc...
Thank YOU for commenting! Thank you SOOO much!
It was a great event too. Bravo to Patek Philippe.
I did!
I thought it was fantastic! I liked the Rare Handcraft pieces even more than the ones I saw at New York 2017. I guess the Japanese themed Rare Handcrafts resonates with me more than the American theme.
The 5308 isn't a classic grand complication
The classic definition of a grand complication would be a minute repeating clockwatch, with big and small strikes (in addition, to the split-second chronograph and perpetual calendar). The Graves watch you posted a picture of is an example of this, AP's r...
You know... Grand Complication definition really varies...
Some super knowledgeable people say it just needs to have a minute repeater, chronograph, and perpetual calendar. Some say it has to have a split seconds. Some say it needs to have more. I'd say there's no universal consensus. But YES! Patek Philippe does...
Thank you Geross for commenting!
I didn't attend the one in Singapore. But I did go to the previous one in New York. So between New York and Tokyo, I'd say I liked the exhibition and the Rare Handcrafts at Tokyo more. I did like the simple Calatrava they made for the New York show a lot ...
Thank you Patrick
These are some of the most beautiful Patek Art of cool historical and interesting theme. It is also powerful and gorgeous. This is my favorite so far.
I agree! I really like some of these Rare Handcrafts!
Definitely very cool! And I really like the Japanese theme on many of these Rare Handcraft pieces.
Many of them are definitely very masculine.
Although I always find it very impressive to see an elegant woman pull off a man's pursuit. Lady race car drivers, Greta Garbo, etc.
Wondeful write-up and pics - thank you.
Personally, the rare handcraft/ enamel pieces are (as always my favorites) but also the wood marquetry ellipse is simple stunning (I also thought it was enamel at first). Besides the samurais, I am really in love with the MR bird enamel piece (I think mad...
Hey! We think alike!
Here's a link to the wood marquetry detail from the 2017 Exhibition... www.watchprosite.com They didn't allow photographs in the room with the artists. So... The above link is your best reference point! ...
Thank you Patrick for the lovely write up and photos...
And Fabrizio for adding a bit of spice to the proceedings in the form of some wood chips 😁😁. I can only imagine how good some of these references may look like in real life! JB's marquetry is literally unparalleled right?! That ellipse is out of this worl...
While for other Rare Handcrafts there's a broader array of excellent artists, there's simply nobody like JB in his field today....This is why Patek's wood marquetry production is so rare, and he is the only artisan authorized to create these dials! ;-)
In real life they are just fantastic artworks, and under a loupe, you can easily see the slivers of wood that compose a dial, which is a very fascinating experience. I'm attaching below a closeup I took of my 5089G dial, though it will never fully convey ...
Exquisite indeed!!
This is an excellent photo!! Agreed the dial will look even better in real life.
PS: Here are a few good macros taken yesterday, as promised :-) [NOTE: Any imperfections are the sole responsibility of my cropping inability and/or the poor light conditions in my house yesterday -- not my friend's! ;-))] Cheers.
This was taken by experimenting with a loupe, perhaps the least neat but most romantic! A little bit of Etro & Patek ...
Etro paisley goes well with this piece!
Maybe we will have a style forum one day. Can you moderate two forums FabR?
OK👌,done deal🤝! And I think 🤔I have the perfect plan! We moderate it together👬, and while you do all the work👷♂️, I’ll do ABSOLUTELY nothing ☠️ except for making money💰off of it!
Then, as soon as I run 🏃♂️ into the Etro family like 82 million others before me, I’ll place a bomb 💣on your forum so people will notice 👀 that I’m there too!🙋♂️ How does it sound?🎶 I’m very smart 🐶 and I thought 🤔about it hard (what’s the emoticon for ...
I just watched an episode of the comedian Jerry Seinfeld's eponymous show...
And this post was much more funny! We're going to put you in charge of a comedy forum as well!
Thank you for sharing these FabR!
Trust your Patek event yesterday went well and the RH is safely back in it's crib!😊
Look at that gorgeous watch! And that gorgeous garden! And those shoes!
What a tasty photo you've got there!
Cheers my friend, one of my favorite watches (my only one in wood marquetry, which makes it even more special!) and some of my favorite eel shoes.... :-)
5089G-020 last night Every time I see our new 6007 "yellow" I love it more and more, I might really ask for one! In the end, this is my happy expression whenever I see ANY Patek watch! ...
Very dapper !!!!
Interestingly the aqua blue version of the 6007 turned up here. It looks and wears quite big IMHO. Not necessarily a criticism. I like to see the red version which probably is my favourite. Also the price is very similar to the 5212. Interesting to note a...
Expectedly, all three version turned out to be *incredibly* popular among collectors. Interestingly, while 38k is almost entry-level these days, it's still nearly twice the steel LE...but everyone knows this is a different world than 3 years ago! :-)
I wish you all the best if you would like the red version, I believe ADs will get no more than 1 or 2 a year per color. I'm tempted by the yellow -001 for the reason that I find it THE happiest and most playful Patek of the entire collection, even if it w...
Thank you!🥂
I am debating the 6007 vs the 5212 (which is one of my favourites but I struggle to read - the reason why I have dragged my heels so far)!
The 5212 is another really interesting and original "new generation" Calatrava in my view, which is clearly receiving lots of love from collectors! Congrats with either one you choose, as these are highly nontrivial Patek allocations! :-)
It's one of my girlfriend's (three) Pateks that she bought recently, and she's MADLY in love with it (understandably, given that the other two are a Nautilus and an Aquanaut! ;-))) Here are a few random pics that I found on her beautiful Korean wrist: I g...
Yes! A big plus!
How did you find her! How fortunate you are! I think we here at WPS approve.
Wonderful photos Thank you for sharing!
You part of the world seem to have a lot of Patek events!
Lovely to see you !!!!
I thought the moderators need to be Mr Philippe Stern vintage 😜😜😉😉😂😂
Amazingly, there was even a time when I was both young and good looking! ;-))))
Me probably at age 3 or 4, hence in the very early 1980's Me two days ago.... ....and my shoes two days ago! Notice that my beauty and that of my shoes have been EXACTLY inversely proportional during the past 40 years! ;-))))))) ...
PS: A couple more quick shots for now (taken by my girlfriend), since the back side of this piece is also a beauty! ;-)
Its private view on the iconic Caliber 240 ...
These marquetry dials just sincerely blow my mind.
They are amazing! I can only hope to add one of my own one day in the future. Even if that does come to pass, I will always enjoy seeing everyone else’s beauties here! Thank you for sharing these excellent photos of your stunning piece.
Thanks B., I find these pieces exceptionally beautiful and I’m glad we could take some proper pictures yesterday!🙏👍
I remember well your exquisite taste for Patek’s Rare Handcraft production, and I’m very happy that an equally stunning piece will soon be on your wrist!🥂 Cheers my friend.
Thanks for the comprehensive review Patrick
Glad that I went - it’s definitely worth it. I spent around 3.5 hours in the exhibition and mostly in the rare handcraft room. Fascinating pieces! Hope to be able to get one of these gems in the future. Here are my favourites: Lastly, good to see you in p...
Possibly my favorite Museum piece being displayed, Duke Ellington's 1563
Patek brought many amazing pieces from their museum to put on display at the Grand Exhibition. One of my favorites was Duke Ellington's 1563. I managed to take some photos that turned out well and hope others may enjoy them. From Patek's catalog: (BTW, th...
The Duke Ellington watch was a very nice treat! What a nice chronograph!
At first I thought it was a 130 model. And then a Patek Philippe expert (none other than famed author John Reardon) who was touring the exhibit with me reminded me that this one was a 1563.
is the 1563 also considered "tasti tondi"
given the round pushers or is that only reserved for the non split seconds model 1463?
I believe the 1463 & 1563 share the same case & pusher design, so I would think so
Although I think "tasti tondi" would typically cause people to think of the 1463 as it is more frequently seen in auctions (and auction houses seem to really love nicknames!). There are only three known examples of the 1563, this example from the Patek Mu...
Thanks for sharing this real gem, Brandon. One of the goals of this Exhibit was in fact to introduce the general public, who may not have an opportunity to visit the Museum, to a selection from THE most significant private collection in the world!👍
Glad you could attend both this incredible exhibition and our own Patek GTG!🥂 Cheers.
thank you for a great report
I especially enjoy the rare handcraft pieces from Patek. It is amazing how skilled these artisans are. I think by now, Im extremely drawn to the wood marquetry dials not belittle the amazing enamel work.
Thank YOU ChristianDK!
I've been thinking about you often these days! Especially whenever I think about the Omega watch scandal - we were both in the same room that fateful day. Back to the Patek Philippe report... You are absolutely correct; these wood marquetry dials are noth...
Yes this scandal is devastating to vintage.
Wish I could be in Tokyo. Im very jealous.
Yes! You were very much missed!
Tokyo is amazing. I've been here several times and it never ceases to amaze me. It's actually gotten more "normal" since the first time I visited nearly 20 years ago. Of course, economically, Japan has been in a state of virtually no growth the past 20 ye...
