Geneva’s most provocative independent has turned to nature’s most fragile materials. ArtyA has unveiled two unique pieces created with dial artist Dominique Arpa-Cirpka, each a miniature work of art that merges haute horlogerie with the raw poetry of the natural world.
The Butterfly Stone composes a striking symmetry evoking a butterfly with outstretched wings — incandescent reds and electric blues against graphic black-and-white patterns — from genuine exotic butterfly wings, collected ethically under the oversight of the relevant authorities. Frozen for eternity through secret natural binders and pigments developed by the artist, the wings retain their original iridescence, set against a mosaic of dark mineral fragments and a milky way of blue lapis lazuli dust. The 39 mm case departs from ArtyA’s usual steel or carbon for a frosted, translucent rose quartz-type material — a silk cocoon for a wild creation — over a Swiss automatic La Joux-Perret G100 movement.
The Capri Sapphire, from the brand’s Son of Sea collection, is a window onto the ocean depths: stabilised sea algae, golden mineral concretions evoking the ocean floor, and fragments of Morpho butterfly wings whose legendary iridescent blue brings an almost otherworldly depth. The case is carved entirely from transparent sapphire, its facets acting as prisms that reveal every fibre of the composition from every angle.
“Dominique’s work brings a breath of lightness and pure poetry, which contrasts beautifully with the mechanical rigor of our Swiss movements,” says the manufacture, founded in Geneva by Yvan Arpa. Both watches are unique pieces, 1/1 — for two collectors only, time will quite literally be one of a kind.
