The Trilobe Nuit Fantastique Dune Edition is an innovative watch, for the very reason the timepiece won an award at the GPHG 2022. However, it is surprising that the Trilobe is only 4 years old.
Today, many features presented as innovations are not actually innovative. Since Christiaan Huygens invented the balance spring in 1675, watchmaking technology has been in constant progress and changed periodically until the 2000s. However, some things have changed since the 2000s with the introduction of the silicon balance spring. Watchmakers and designers are no longer the only rulers, sometimes engineers have the last word. French Trilobe is also a brand that produces watches that are marvels of engineering, a collaboration between countries and cultures since the movements are produced in Swiss.
As is known, France has a rooted philosophical tradition. Many philosophers such as Descartes, Bergson, Sartre, Foucault, Bachelard and Lacan have made great contributions to the history of philosophy. On the other hand, the country was considered the center of European watchmaking in the 18th century, the 1789 revolution interrupted the development of countryâs watch industry, for instance the famous watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet had to flee to Switzerland during those times. Ultimately, by the 20th century, there was not a significant French watchmaking, despite the great brands. Still, there are very strong ties between France and Switzerland. And the last link in the chain is Trilobe.
It all began when Gautier Massonneau, the young French entrepreneur behind the brand, wanted to buy a new watch. When he didnât find a watch he desired, like any smart entrepreneur, he decided to make his own timepiece. His parents were architects and despite he is from financial sector, he has superior aesthetic taste and a literature lover, thatâs why, he wanted to try something new and move away from the traditional way of showing time with hour and second hands. The collection names are inspired by the works RenĂ© Char (Les Matinaux â The Early Risers) and Stefan Zweig (La Nuit Fantastique â An Extraordinary Night).
After design process, Massonneau launched its first watch in late 2018 in collaboration with Le Cercle des Horlogers and presented its first collection, Les Matinaux, at BaselWorld. In 2021, Trilobe achieved to went on to the finals with Nuit Fantastique and Grained Black. In 2022, it participated again with the Dune Edition, which was added to the Nuit Fantastique collection, and this time it triumphed in the final and won the âPetite Aiguilleâ award.
