Herm\u00e8s Horloger has created the first timepiece to use the unique “Enamel Ombrant” technique. This method, which took two years to adapt, uses light to reveal, in relief, the motif of a watch dial.
\nEchoing Herm\u00e8s’ 2016 annual theme “Nature at full gallop”, the fawn featured on the Arceau Tigre dial is taken from an illustration by artist Robert Dallet, who collaborated with the company in the 1980s.
\nTo reveal the full power of the feline depicted, the technique of l’Email ombrant, which combines the art of engraving and enamel, was chosen. This technique, derived from lithophanie and originally practiced in the Limoges region of France, creates paintings that reveal themselves only when light shines through. The motif is created in negative in a mold into which the porcelain cookie is poured to form the work. When it comes to creating the mold, the craftsman’s talent lies in his ability to imagine the variations in cookie thickness that will give the nuances so sought-after. Patented by Paul Bourgoin en Tremblay in 1841, Enamel Ombrant is based on the same basic principle. In this case, however, the craftsman shapes the motif in relief before covering it with lightly tinted translucent enamel. <\/p>\n
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