As a watchmaker, Breguet has always been deeply tied with the world of fine art, and the preservation of legacy and tradition so the news of its partnership with Frieze, the global art fair, is only natural. The watchmaker is even the subject of a famous book by George Daniels called The Art of Breguet. The partnership with Frieze has a contemporary flavour and will run to 2024.

To kick things off, Frieze New York is just around the corner, May 18 to 22 in fact, and demonstrates how this partnership will work. Frieze has announced that artist Pablo Bronstein will collaborate with Breguet to create response artwork to the watchmaker’s works, world and legacy throughout 2022. These commissions will be featured at the Breguet lounge at each fair, including the one in New York, at The Shed in Manhattan.

At this fair, visitors should take the chance to admire a historical “Souscription” pocket watch from the Breguet Museum. This minimalistic pocket watch influenced the business of watchmaking for generations and is still relevant today. The Souscription watch is the inspiration behind the contemporary Tradition collection, which will also be showcased. Another bit of Breguet history, and still a technique marking many haute horlogerie watches, is guillochage, the art of which is also on display at Frieze New York. This style of dial decoration, pioneered by Abraham-Louis Breguet himself circa 1786, is done via a special lathe, which will also be on hand for live demonstrations.

“Our brand has always been close to the world of art. Whether through our founder who created the neo-classical style that inspired modern watchmaking or through our craftsmen who, within our manufacture, perpetuate the ancestral know-how of dial and movement decoration. Forming a partnership with a fair such as Frieze, which showcases the talents of today and tomorrow, is meaningful to Breguet. We are happy and proud to start this partnership.” says Lionel a Marca, CEO of Breguet.

Emily Glazebrook, Commercial Director, Frieze added: “We are delighted to launch our new global partnership with Breguet at Frieze New York 2022 by debuting our collaboration with a new commission by artist Pablo Bronstein. Breguet has strong ties to the visual arts, and much like Frieze, is founded upon an enduring appreciation of innovation, creativity and quality.