There’s no denying the legacy and pedigree that comes with all things F.P. Journe. I mean, the man managed to win seven awards from the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève over a nine-year period, and anyone who has had the chance to see his work up close will be quick to add them to their short or long-term wish lists. The man is painfully outspoken (in a good way), but above all else he continues to push his boundaries for the sake of his craft rather than the sake of revenue, which is the pitfall of countless watch brands both big and small.
This obsession with innovations brings us to what we have in front of us — the Elegante 48. Initially launched as a women’s model in very early 2014, the Elegante led watch enthusiasts from every corner of the industry to stop and ask, “what’s up with that?” Early reviews of the Elegante addressed the concerns of why? and really? Once upsized to a size wearable for men I had to wonder how well it would translate. The sticker shock of a $12,000 quartz-powered dress watch isn’t the kind of thing to take lightly, so a week on the wrist was in order to see how the piece stacks up.
Design
Coming to the table at over $10,000 without the use of precious metals, there’s a pretty high level of expectation when it comes to design and finishing. Thankfully, and as expected, F.P. Journe delivers on all counts in the design department. The tonneau style case, measuring a very comfortable 40mm x 48mm, sports a great mix of mirror-polished and brushed finishing. The classic flat crown (of all things Journe) remains present, as does the use of a case-fitted strap.
However, the remainder of the Elegante’s case if very different from his usual designs. This tonneau-style case first saw the light of day the F.P.Journe $47k+ Vagabondage jumping hours and minutes complication in 2009, but history lessons aside, it’s a well-executed case design that’s dressy enough for a day at the office, yet just different enough to stand out when worn more casually.
Focusing in on dial design, the Elegante 48 speaks a very similar design language to the Chronometre Bleu in many ways. Simple numerals indicating both hours and minutes (rather than just hours, as is the case with the ladies Elegante) surround its off-white SuperLuminova-clad dial, which is in turn blocked in by four metal plates. This is one of the few details that I’m still trying to wrap my head around. In examining the piece I wore during the course of the week, as well as imagery of other Elegante models, it seems these metal details never line up evenly. Knowing F.P. Journe and the work he stands for the design is clearly purposeful, however it is a bit peculiar considering the symmetry seen elsewhere throughout the piece’s design.
On the plus side I’ve always been weirdly obsessed with full-lume dials and the Elegante 48 certainly doesn’t disappoint.
The last bit of design that has to be noted on the Elegante 48 is the business end of things. Of course, F.P. Journe would be the guy to figure out a way to make a built-from-scratch quartz movement look damn sexy — that’s pretty much a given. If he hadn’t, it’s safe to say the unveiling of the Elegante would have led to the man being laughed out of the room.
With attention to the display caseback, it’s the little things like his initials patterned into the inside of his rubber straps, and the great logo execution on the inner face of the deployant clasp that grab my attention. Yes, these are the same tactics that have appeared on other timepieces of his over the years, but far too frequently people get wrapped up in the great execution of something that needed to be executed greatly, and they begin to forget all the other little details that make a timepiece like this special.
In the Field
Wearing the Elegante 48 over the course of a week was interesting for a multitude of reasons. Its supple rubber strap ensured that it was a comfortable choice, and though I occasionally felt it was a little too plain and conservative for some of my wardrobe choices, it wasn’t that far out of place.
What proved most interesting was less about the wardrobe pairings and more about the sometimes-heated dialogue it would incite among a varied level of enthusiasts and collectors with whom I crossed paths.
First came a colleague and tech writer with a moderate interest in watches replica, and whose daily go-to is a Planet Ocean Chrono. He was somewhat familiar with the work of F.P. Journe, however immediately after hearing the words quartz and over $10k in close proximity that was pretty much where he checked out of the conversation. Phrases like “is he crazy” and other expletives ensued, making it quite clear that he wasn’t drinking the F.P. Journe Kool-Aid.
From there of course there were the few deeply geeky (or simply like-minded folks) that truly appreciated Journe’s innovative approach to power-saving, the dual-driver/processor design of his movement, and the fact that — quartz or not — it was still one of his creations and worthy of a place in any self-respecting collector’s collection. I’ll absolutely agree that the sleep-mode setup with a motion-detecting micro rotor is properly clever, and when we’re talking about design, finishing, engineering, and construction the Elegante is very impressive. I’m not convinced it would be the first Journe that most would buy, but I also don’t doubt that they’ll sell quite a few to brand-faithful who already have an F.P. Journe or three in their collection already.
Final Notes
Here’s where things start to get a bit tricky. Getting really personal for a moment, I enjoyed it, appreciated it, and admired it, however I don’t see it finding a spot in my watch drawer. For starters my collection has a number of different directions to grow before something like this would see regular rotation. Personal tastes aside, I’m still struggling to wrap my brain around the sticker price for anything quartz-powered. As much as I try to rationalize and look at things from a different perspective, that remains the hang-up that I have a real tough time shaking. If anything managed to foster a different outlook on the positioning of the Elegante 48, it was my recent interview with the man himself.
The thing to remember is that the Elegante is by no means the end of Journe’s work with bringing quartz to the world of Haute Horlogerie. He recently mentioned to us that he is putting efforts into building a quartz-powered perpetual calendar using the same clever battery-saving sleep mode and multiple driver/processors that power the Elegante 48, which would bring a $100k complication well within reach of a much broader collector base.
While I might not be an Elegante 48 buyer, you bet your ass I’d consider being an F.P. Journe Perpetual buyer in his target $20k-ish price range. Drawing on my automotive background, the Elegante is in many ways Journe’s Tesla Roadster. Production volume is low, there will be plenty of early adopters, but when the curtain drops on his Model S, Model X and Model 3 there will be plenty more of us that will be willing to part with our money.