Audemars Piguet has announced that Chilean designer Sebastian Errazuriz will create the Swiss watchmaker’s evolved lounge for Art Basel’s 2017 shows, which will display a new watch and savoir-faire exhibition to be unveiled at Art Basel in Hong Kong.

Audemars Piguet is a global associate partner for Art Basel, presenting innovative lounge concepts in the Collectors Lounge since 2013.

Art Basel's fifth edition in Hong Kong, from March 23 to 25, will feature 242 premier galleries from 34 countries and territories, as well as a new sector, Kabinett. This year's show features 29 new galleries and half of the galleries showing overall have exhibition spaces in Asia and the Asia Pacific region. The show takes place at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre.

For the second consecutive year, Sebastian Errazuriz has created a lounge inspired by the Swiss watchmaker’s home in the Vallée de Joux. Entitled Second Nature, his new design has evolved from the previous year’s ice formations to a space made mostly of warm materials such as wood, which reminds the visitor of the vast forests in the Jura Mountains, symbolising Audemars Piguet’s deep sense of history and endless growth, a statement said.

The concept of Second Nature follows the development of a tree, displaying its stages of evolution during the three Art Basel fairs. Just as its roots anchor and hold its spirit, the core of Audemars Piguet stems from its commitment to a rich heritage. Simultaneously, it is through the extending branches and leaves that a tree is able to move towards the future, determined to grow and evolve in spite of the harsh environment that surrounds it. Second Nature is a testimony to the brand’s past, present and future but also to the act of recreating what nature generates so effortlessly, encouraging us to value and appreciate the world around us.

The tree sculpture exhibited on the lounge has been created using both traditional and cutting-edge methods, from traditional hand drawn sketches to digital fabrication devices such as computer milling and 3D printing. Art Basel in Hong Kong will show the initial stage of the tree with bare branches while the following editions of the show will see the lounge evolve with the seasons, the company said.

The Audemars Piguet lounge at Art Basel will continue to exhibit an exceptional selection of timepieces curated by the brand’s Museum alongside an installation by Cheng Ran.

Including both vintage and contemporary Audemars Piguet watches, the 2017 exhibition at the Collectors Lounge will focus on three distinct categories of watchmaking art: complications with Perpetual Calendars, decorations and finishings including the Florentine hammering technique applied on the Royal Oak Frosted Gold, as well as gem-setting savoir-faire, showcased by three exceptional High Jewellery timepieces.  - TradeArabia News Service