Haute couture designer Yiqing Yin created a dress that echoes the spirit of Vacheron Constantin's first scented concept watch, Egerie - The Pleats of Time, using advanced fabric technologies. Imagine wearing a watch that not only tells time, but also releases a fragrance whenever you move.
Then there’s also the Egerie Moon Phase, a 100-piece limited edition. Developed in partnership with Yin as well, this timepiece features a 37mm pink gold case with a gem-set bezel and mother-of-pearl dial in soft lilac hues chosen by the designer. The moon phase complication is set within a subtle diagonal line formed by the Vacheron Constantin logo and the crown. On the reverse is Yin’s engraved name, and the in-house Calibre 1088 L via an exhibition caseback.
It definitely was a big challenge. When Vacheron Constantin approached me, I was quite ignorant about the horology world and all its technical constraints, rigours, and rules. I come from a world where the creative process is soft and very malleable because I work with textiles. I'm free to twist and sculpt it; everything is very intuitive, and the gesture is immediate. Once I’ve an idea, I can create the impact in minutes. On the other hand, the development time for a watch is very long.
The team at Vacheron Constantin is amazing and so kind. We have mutual admiration and respect for each other. Whenever I presented an idea, they never said, “You’re crazy!” Instead, they were open-minded, willing to listen, test it, and find technical vocabularies to express my ideas, so that was great.
This isn’t your first collaboration with master perfumer Dominique Ropion – he scented a dress you created for Expo 2022 in Dubai, as well as the French Pavilion display there. How did you two meet and how was he roped into this collaboration?Dominique and I have known each other since 2010, when he first created a perfume for my fashion school diploma collection. That was our first collaboration.