Sotheby’s Is auctioning off a rare trove of drawings by Gérald Genta, the ‘Picasso of watchmaking’:
This spring, Sotheby’s hosts “,” a series of sales taking place in Switzerland, Hong Kong, New York, and online featuring 100 original drawings by the legendary Swiss watch designer.
“As a Swiss artist living in Geneva, he felt that he must apply his art to watchmaking, and that is exactly what he dedicated his life to,” Evelyne Genta, the designer’s widow and former business partner, added. The second auction is currently happening in Hong Kong and presents 34 drawings and watercolors, including his original 1976 design for another icon of the watch world: theThe Swiss brand’s first luxury sports watch began as a quick sketch on a paper napkin at a bar in Basel. Genta had spotted the CEO of Patek Philippe, Philippe Stern, and started doodling. Soon after, by coincidence, the company asked him to design a stainless-steel watch, and he was prepared.