The Jaeger-LeCoultre and Alex Trochut Typeface


Photo: Time and Tide

 

Jaeger-LeCoultre (JLC) frequently celebrates the long-standing connection between artwork and horology in its watches, endeavors, and partnerships. With its latest ‘Made of Makers’ initiative, the Swiss luxury brand manufacturer hopes to expand and enhance the connection involving art and horology in 2022. This attempts to unite a group of creatives, designers, and artisans from a variety of fields beyond watchmaking.

The brand has previously worked with artists such as Guillaume Marmin, a multidisciplinary artist, pastry chef Nina Métayer, as well as mixologist Matthias Giroud. However, with the new initiative, Jaeger-LeCoultre hopes to collaborate with equally talented artists who consider originality, knowledge, and accuracy as the basic principles. It will work with artists whose creativity explores new modes of expression using various, frequently surprising elements and media.

Jaeger-LeCoultre decided thus to collaborate with the legendary Spanish typeface designer Alex Trochut. He devised a fresh alphabet font for the Maison in the spirit of Art Deco for its first ‘Made of Makers’ program.

 

Photo: Dmarge

 

Trochut, a New York-based artist born in Barcelona, has designed album covers for artists including Katy Perry and The Rolling Stones, as well as for companies such as Gucci. The designer developed the 1931 Alphabet, a bold, modern alphabet form, as a reflection of La Grande Maison’s principles for Jaeger-LeCoultre. He drew inspiration from Art Deco, a design era that continues to dominate New York’s architecture and is significant to Jaeger-LeCoultre. This is because it served as the basis for the Reverso timepiece.

The decision to use Art Deco is also very significant because of the principles it promotes. Art Deco was progressive, upbeat, and avant-garde for its time throughout the 1920s and 1930s, capturing the remarkable sense of modernization that rocked the globe during the period. The movement that Jaeger-LeCoultre tends to associate with was also characterized by a passion for technology and a significant amount of energy and creativity.

Therefore, Trochut’s innovative 1931 Alphabet for Jaeger-LeCoultre is a modern improvement to Maison’s design aesthetic. Every letter has a special sculpted quality and a strong feeling of visual depth within a precise and contemporary interpretation of Art Deco, giving a sense of vitality and movement. Because of this, it can also express itself in two dimensions and as three-dimensional structures.

 

Photo: Dmarge

 

Trochut’s art is comparable to the craftsmen who specialize in sophisticated watch mechanisms and timepiece design. This is because it blends intense complication with outwardly seeming simplicity. He created a strong typeface for the Jaeger-LeCoultre partnership that embraces the principles of La Grande Maison whilst bringing them up to date. 

According to Trochut, a design combining Art Deco and Jaeger-expertise LeCoultre’s in manufacturing came as he began constructing the prototypes. The letters reminded him of a system composed of numerous modular pieces that fit together to form a whole. Since he desired the appearance of moving machinery, he exposed all of the tiny components of the characters, making them feel real. 

Alex Trochut also believes that the core of watchmaking and typography are artistry and technical expertise. Letters are composed of various vibrant and logical choices, with a strong inner logic uniting them all into a single alphabetic or lettering style, much like a jigsaw. Therefore, all disciplines exhibit a passion for minor details, which must coexist within a framework, even though he thinks watchmaking is more intricate.

On the other hand, the CEO of Jaeger-LeCoultre, Catherine Rénier, stated that they were excited to collaborate with Alex Trochut. Like their Maison, he harnesses his history to convey the current and future in innovative new approaches, as evidenced by his avant-garde creative works.

 

Photo: Hypebeast

The new label font is expected to become another hallmark of La Grande Maison and be used in a range of other upcoming Jaeger-LeCoultre projects. It’s also going to be available as a new type of personalization for inscription on a Reverso case back. 

 

Get Your Reverso Engraved with JLC’s Latest Alex Trochut Typeface

Typography is usually among the most significant and deeply psychological forms of art. Whether aware of it or not, the relationship between the letters we see and how they are shown is important. A typographer’s task is to determine what kind of font conveys in addition to the words written. For graphic designing, Alex Trochut has received praise from all over the world. Besides, he has worked with well-known brands such as Apple and Coca-Cola on initiatives you’ve probably already seen.

The legendary Spanish artist has produced an alphabetic typography for Jaeger-LeCoultre that embodies their Art Deco history and prestige instead of releasing another timepiece. This is an idea that is constrained in terms of both quantity and breadth. JLC has continued to use that design aesthetic for almost a century, given that the Reverso was created in 1931, at the pinnacle of the Art Deco era. With cascading patterns of precisely regulated widths and concentric features that flash with intricate form in a striking exhibition of great complexity, each of Trochut’s characters resembles a device within itself.

This typography will be given for engraved customizations on the rear of Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso timepieces. It appears as a group of initials in an incredibly unique way. However, La Grande Maison has other plans as well.

It might take a while. Nevertheless, Jaeger-LeCoultre will use the new typeface to its maximum capacity across a variety of goods and promotions so that it becomes almost as closely associated with the company as the Reverso itself.

 

Outstanding Reverso Craftsmanship

The Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso has served as a canvas for progressively ingenious complexities. However, part of what makes it so durable is the skill needed to produce such exceptional watches.

 

Photo: Time and Tide

 

The amusing lock of the foldable casing as it glides on its carriers is the finest illustration of the flawless artistry found in Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso devices. Only the precise work of the experts who build these pieces can give them a refinement of functionality. In fact, the refined steel case back offers the user a blank canvas full of customization options, which only enhances the allure of the Reverso.

 

Final Thoughts

Your canvas is waiting, whether you already have an uncustomized Reverso or want to start a gallery. With Jaeger- LeCoultre’s inscription tool, you can begin personalizing your Reverso right away. You can also discover how Trochut’s distinctive typography can make your watch look unique.

 

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