Cover Pascal Narbeburu, timepieces director of Van Cleef & Arpels (Photo: courtesy of Van Cleef & Arpels)
Pascal Narbeburu, timepieces director of Van Cleef & Arpels (Photo: courtesy of Van Cleef & Arpels)
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Timepieces director at Van Cleef & Arpels Pascal Narbeburu chats with us about poetic complications, team spirit and why every watch must begin with a story
For Pascal Narbeburu, the man overseeing every timepiece that leaves Van Cleef & Arpels, a watch without a story is a watch without a reason to exist. “If there is no story, there is no development,” he says—and he means it. From a career that began in automotive gearboxes to conducting an orchestra of engineers, craftsmen and artists, the timepieces director has made the maison’s narrative-first philosophy not just a creative principle but a technical mandate.
In conversation with Tatler around the Hong Kong edition of the Poetry of Time exhibition, Narbeburu reveals what it truly takes to put a real work of art on your wrist.
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Above Lady Arpels Brise d’Été watch (Photo: courtesy of Van Cleef & Arpels)
Lady Arpels Brise d’Été watch (Photo: courtesy of Van Cleef & Arpels)
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Your professional life began in the automotive industry. What similarities and differences did you notice when you moved into watches?
In the automotive industry, I learnt what efficiency was; I arrived at Rolex at a time when an industrial revolution was taking place, thanks in particular to the implementation of [automated] machines, replacing the old ones. What interested me was the implementation of new concepts of construction, production, organisation and management. Through these different experiences, I was able to [broaden] my interests— technically, [in terms of organisation] and aesthetically.
Before, I used to work on gearboxes, [which are] more technical than aesthetic; [on joining the watch industry] it became clear to me that these different interests were not antagonistic but complementary, and that getting engineers and artists to work together for a common goal is challenging and exciting. Today that is my main challenge: to be sure that engineers, craftsmen and artists work in tune, because all of these worlds are so different. They have to understand [one another] and [their] constraints.
Can you share anything about your approach to leadership?
I always say two sports built who I am—rugby, for the team spirit; and alpinism, for endurance: when you reach the summit, [your journey] is not finished; you have to go down. That is what I ask of people: to be courageous and to have endurance. When we have to develop [as many things as] we do, we have so many challenges, and at the beginning it is difficult to imagine how we will be able to create the story we want to tell. I have to support my team and ask them to go forward.
Read more: Van Cleef & Arpels: crafting poetry, precision and meaning into everyday life
Above Lady Arpels Bal des Amoureux Automate watch (Photo: courtesy of Van Cleef & Arpels)
Lady Arpels Bal des Amoureux Automate watch (Photo: courtesy of Van Cleef & Arpels)
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What are you most proud of with respect to your team’s creativity?
We have managed to create a strong team made up of talented people from different backgrounds. I wanted to implement an enthusiastic, demanding, curious and fun state of mind; this was very important. My job is to make sure that, when people come [to work] in the morning, they are happy to come; that way, they give their best.
During the development phases [for new watches], there is a mix of work carried out between the engineers on the computer and the craftsmen at their workbenches. They challenge each other and push the frontiers of technical and artistic possibilities, and I am very proud to see the cohesion that resides there. It goes beyond what we reach in terms of development. I am very proud of that state of mind, how they work and how proud they are. I do nothing—my team does everything. My job is like being in an orchestra: I am the conductor, and I must be sure that [we optimise everyone’s expertise].
Above Lady Arpels Heures Florales watch (Photo: courtesy of Van Cleef & Arpels)
Lady Arpels Heures Florales watch (Photo: courtesy of Van Cleef & Arpels)
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What emotions do you hope anyone exposed to Van Cleef & Arpels—whether owners of its timepieces or even people who simply view an exhibition like Poetry of Time, recently on show in Hong Kong—will feel? And what message would you like them to leave with?
To answer this question, it is important to remember that our way of developing creations is very different from others. I always say this with respect, because I used to work for other brands and I know how they develop their very high-quality and very different watches. But Van Cleef & Arpels [does things] another way.
Firstly, we always start from a story. [While we have many different complications,] we do not choose this one and that
one and assemble them simply to propose a new combination. For us, there is no sense in that. We start from the story we want to tell, and it gives [meaning] to all of our watches. They are like a [Shakespeare play] on your bookshelf or a painting by Picasso, Rembrandt and so on; they are timeless. This is what I explain to big directors of competitors when they visit us at our booth at Watches & Wonders.
The story is first drawn on paper, and when my team and I receive it, frankly, we do not know how we will be able to create [it] on the watch. That is why we need between four and five years of development [and] why we have between three to five patents every year—I always say that for us it is not [competing in the] Olympic Games of patents; we develop [so many] patents because we are obliged to find new mechanisms. It is important to understand this philosophy.
All of our developments are made to [tell] a story— benevolent and poetic—to our clients. If there is no story, there is no development, and then there is no sense. The story will guide us in the search for watchmaking techniques and artistic crafts.
For example, when we [first] wanted to implement stones on cloisonné enamel, the designer suggested putting stones on small metal parts with small holes. I said, “No way, I want to set diamonds directly on the enamel.” But how [would] we do that? The difference is that we have to innovate [as soon as] we receive the draft. It is very challenging. I hope that customers who buy our watches will feel the emotion and the passion of my team. And I hope that when they wear the watch on their wrist, they will feel very proud: that they have a real work of art on their wrist.
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As the Regional Editor for Watches and Jewellery and Editorial Content Lead for Tatler GMT, Amrita Katara specialises in luxury watch and jewellery coverage across Asia, with expertise in editorial strategy, feature writing and interviews with industry leaders. Her past roles span luxury lifestyle media and client partnerships. Based in Mumbai, Amrita’s work bridges global trends and Asian market insights.
