French artist Pierre Soulages' Outrenoir artwork interpreted as a statement timepiece
The task of miniaturising a piece of artwork to a mere few millimetres in dimensions is a fascinating one. In horology, metiers d'art (literally meaning "art and crafts") demonstrates not just the watchmakers' microscopic skill and deftness but also serves as a tool to open our eyes to the vast beauty of the art world.
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For those who want to wear a piece of art on the wrist, Baume & Mercier's latest proposition is the one to get. It pays tribute to abstract French artist Pierre Soulages' signature Outrenoir series of black paintings. In this series, Soulages manipulated the dark tones to create textural matte and glossy effects depending on where the light hits.
For this collab, the manufacture reached out to Musée Soulages in Rodez, France where more than 200 works by Soulages are on exhibit. Baume & Mercier identified Peinture 390 x 130 cm 17 mars 2019 as its main inspiration. The painting was donated by Soulage to the museum in 2020 in celebration of his 100th birthday.
See also: Blancpain’s Metier D’Art: The Four Great Beauties Of China
