Girard-Perregaux builds on their partnership with Aston Martin with a collaboration resulting in the new Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition, based on the DB12.
Press Release information with commentary in italics.
New: Girard-Perregaux Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition
The Girard-Perregaux Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition will retail at SGD 52,500 inclusive of GST. Limited Edition of 250 pieces.
Commentary
The GP Neo Bridges began in 2017 with an re-imagination of the classic Tourbillon with Three Golden Bridges that the maison is famous for. The exercise was to not only to modernise the look of the bridges, which they did with the highly stylised skeleton bow-tie look, but also removed the tourbillon for a lower entry cost.
The model gets an update in this novelty, with touches made in collaboration with Aston Martin. The iconic British luxury car maker’s DB12 was used as a base for the inspiration. Green is the accent of choice, though the car is available in 48 colour options, the signature colour is is the launch model’s Irrediscent Emerald.
Touches of the same colour is used in the bridges and the stitching of the strap. This colour accent goes over an essentially grey/blackened watch. From the release photographs by GP and Aston Martin, the colours don’t seem to quite match. But judging colour and hue from photographs taken from two sources can be misleading. And we will need to look at both the watch and car under the same light to be able to judge. However, on the watch, contrast looks excellent, and the dial ring displaying suspended indices and hands in silver gets a nice additional touch with lume which glows green.
Other than that, the watch is a rather standard Neo Bridges. The same GP08400 movement is used. And we are still kinda surprised that it is an automatic watch by looking through the sapphire case back. As the movement is turned front to back, the rotor is visible on the front, hidden in plain sight in the upper dial. Still a rather cool feature.
The regular Neo Bridges is still available at EUR 32.9k, so the Aston Martin premium works out to be about EUR 7k.
Release information
Building on their official partnership, Aston Martin and Girard-Perregaux have jointly created a spectacular new timepiece, reimagining ‘the bridge’, one of the oldest mechanical signatures in watchmaking. A new addition to the famous Bridges collection, the Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition showcases functional components often hidden from view and brings them to the fore. Inspired by Aston Martin’s next generation of sportscars, designers took influence from the world’s first Super Tourer, DB12, with the new watch reflecting the car’s sculpted contours and sharp lines.
Blending beauty and engineering
In 2021, Girard-Perregaux was announced as the Official Watch Partner of the ultra-luxury British brand Aston Martin. Both companies have a rich heritage, with over 300 years of combined history, operating in the rarefied world of luxury. Moreover, the iconic British marque and Swiss Manufacture are synonymous with design excellence and no-compromise engineering, making them a perfect match. The collaboration between the two leaders has seen the creation of some truly exceptional timepieces, each one proudly bearing the name of both marques.
Now, Aston Martin and Girard-Perregaux unveil their fifth co-branded timepiece in their long-standing collaboration. The Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition is driven by the passion of both parties to push the performance envelope in terms of design and watchmaking expertise. It is contemporary and seamlessly blends beauty and engineering to deliver breathtaking performance.
“It was clear from the start of our relationship with Girard-Perregaux as our Official Watch Partner that we had a shared passion for precision and performance design. Our exchange of ideas about design details and specifications flowed openly, naturally, and the watches bearing our names have been authentically co-built through a shared spirit of true collaboration.
In this latest model, the Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition, the joint creative team – comprising designers from both companies – decided to challenge some commonly held horological conventions around the design of the movement. With due consideration given to structural rigidity, performance and beauty, I’m delighted with the result.”
Marek Reichmann, Executive Vice President and Chief Creative Officer, Aston Martin Lagonda“This was not merely a case of putting Aston Martin’s name on one of our watches. They played an active role in the conception of this watch, looking at the materials employed and, interestingly the design of the movement. The Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition is the impressive outcome of two companies synergistically working together.”
Embracing the future
Patrick Pruniaux, CEO of Girard-Perregaux
The Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition is the latest addition to the Swiss watchmaker’s Bridges collection, a range of models that has long been entwined with the company’s DNA. In 1867, Constant Girard sketched a pocket watch endowed with three parallel bridges. Unusually, these prominent bridges, essential components that form part of a movement’s structure, were refined and famously became design elements. However, while Girard-Perregaux is justly proud of its heritage it does not languish in the past, but wholeheartedly embraces the future, often uniting thought-provoking styling, cutting-edge materials and inventive mechanisms, something that is clearly manifest with the new Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition.
A shared language
Aston Martin and Girard-Perregaux both speak the same language when it comes to luxury. They each understand the importance of consistent design while simultaneously seeking advancement. Underpinning this shared philosophy is a belief that mechanical components should arouse intense emotions.
The Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition, a watch that perpetuates some of the design ideas found on former collaborative watches, also delivers a new, fresh-faced appearance, suffused with considered details. It eschews a conventional dial to reveal its inverted movement, the Calibre GP0840000-2164, a configuration that brings components usually found to the rear of the watch, relocating them to the front. Upholding the spirit of the Bridges collection, the functional components on this model contribute to its overall visual allure. The Neo-shaped bridges support the gear train and balance and the wearer is invited to witness several parts in conversation, working together to impart time. Upholding Girard-Perregaux tradition, the arrangement of movement components confers symmetry, thereby delivering a harmonious appearance.
Consistent design
Skeletonised baton-type indexes proclaim the hours and minutes. Inspired by the automotive world where extraneous material is removed to save weight, this watch dispenses with a conventional dial. The hands incorporate luminescent material which bestows a green emission in restricted light, a colour that will forever be associated with Aston Martin. The suspended indexes, located on a ring encircling the dial, project outwards and are lined with luminescent material which again appear green in dim conditions. Both the design of the hands and indexes uphold the styling of previous dual-branded watches. In between each index, crisp green markings, positioned on the aforesaid ring, denote each minute in lucid form. Endowed with two Neo bridges, executed in Aston Martin Green, the design pays tribute to Constant’s 19th century creation, albeit realised in a contemporary form, while the colour of the bridges honours Aston Martin and its rich history of crafting high-performance cars.
Power is essential
Power is a prerequisite for performance, something that is evident within any creation bearing the names Aston Martin and Girard-Perregaux. A barrel, effectively the fuel tank of the watch, is positioned at 1.30. It’s supported by a black openworked bridge and bears the name of the Swiss Manufacture. This watch is automatic, harvesting energy from the natural motion of the wearer’s wrist, using a small oscillating weight, termed a micro-rotor. The dimensions of the micro-rotor contribute to the movement’s slender profile, just 5.45mm in height. Furthermore, it also affords unhindered views of the movement. In this instance, the micro-rotor is engraved with the name of the British luxury marque, sharing equal status with the Manufacture’s name gracing the barrel. When designing the barrel and micro-rotor, the joint creative team took inspiration from the brakes which are revealed behind Aston Martin DB12’s spoked wheels, showcasing sharper lines and extra openings.
A play with colour
Colour is a useful means of accentuating shapes, imbuing sculptural forms with light and shade, emotion and passion. Appraising the Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition, brushed greys, vibrant rubies, brooding blacks and silver-coloured wheels unite to impart time while simultaneously stirring the soul. Most notably, the Aston Martin Green Neo Bridges reveal different tones as they engage with light. Endowing the bridges with colour while maintaining their alluring three-dimensional appearance was technically challenging.
The lightweight case, measuring 45mm in diameter, is formed of titanium dressed in a suit of black DLC. Effortlessly stylish, it plays a deferential role to the watch’s display, allowing both static and dynamic movement components the opportunity to shine.
A DB12 for the wrist
Peruse the sinuous contours of the Aston Martin DB12, the world’s first super tourer and its intent is clear: to cover great distances in comfort while making each mile a thrilling and memorable experience. The Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition shares the same philosophy. Each contour and every facet are the result of protracted thought, intended to deliver performance and a sublime wearer experience. The various materials have been combined to ignite the soul and seduce the wearer with their tactile feel. For example, the strap is black rubber with a fabric effect and is enlivened with green stitches. Fitted with a titanium DLC triple folding buckle, the strap not only cossets the wrist wonderfully but also looks stunning.
Exclusivity guaranteed
Matching the scarcity and exclusivity of an Aston Martin model, the Neo Bridges Aston Martin Edition will be a rare sight, limited to just 250 pieces. The model goes on sale in December 2023 and will be available worldwide in all authorised Girard-Perregaux retailers.
Technical specification NEO BRIDGES ASTON MARTIN EDITION
Reference 84000-21-3236-5CX
Suggested retail price: CHF 36’000 / USD 37’700 / GBP 32’100 / EUR 39’800
Limited edition of 250 pieces, not numbered (One of 250)
Case
Material: titanium DLC
Dimensions: 45.00 mm
Height: 12.18 mm
Glass: anti-reflective sapphire crystal ‘box’
Case-back: sapphire crystal with white Aston Martin logo decal
Dial: ring displaying suspended indexes with luminescent material (green emission)
Hands: skeletonized, ‘baton’ type with luminescent material
(green emission)
Water resistance: 30 meters (3 ATM)
Movement
Reference: GP084000-2164
Self-winding mechanical movement
Diameter: 32.00 mm (141/4’’’)
Height: 5.45 mm
Frequency: 21,600 Vib/h – (3 Hz)
Number of components: 208
Number of jewels: 29
Power reserve: min. 48 hours
Functions: hours, minutes
Bracelet
Material: black rubber strap with fabric effect and green stitches
Buckle: titanium DLC triple folding buckle
2 Comments
I wrote a Listicle on this piece for a India-ME based platform. Initially this piece did not warm up to me; but after reading it and understanding it, I love it. GP has done a fantastic job. Sometimes one has to read about a piece to better understand it.
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