New York, New York: Harry Winston's The Avenue Is A Love Letter To The Big Apple
No other city holds as special a place in Harry Winston’s heart as New York. The King of Diamonds was born in the Big Apple, and honed his craft under the watchful eye of his father at the family’s small store on the Upper West Side, just blocks away from the future headquarters of his eponymous jewellery label. Small wonder, then, that the city has been an inexhaustible source of inspiration to the house in the almost nine decades since, as is evident in The Avenue collection, which pays homage to the brand’s storied salon along Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.
Decorative elements of the Art Deco style, popular at the time Harry Winston founded his business in the 1930s, find their echo in the breathtaking timepieces. A sleek, elongated case recalls the vertical emphasis of art-deco architecture, while miniature arches positioned at either end of the dial evoke the stately stone façade of the Fifth Avenue flagship. An octagonal logo appliqué at the 12 o’clock position, on the other hand, alludes not only to the geometry of the style moderne, but also to the emerald-cut favoured by Mr Winston for jewels.
Brought to life in 18-karat rose or white gold, mother-of-pearl, and precious stones, the series boasts a mind-boggling array of opulent options, each a true horological masterpiece. The enduringly elegant Avenue Classic well deserves its appellation, embellished with over a hundred diminutive but dazzling diamonds, and matched with a white alligator leather strap. It also comes the Classic Aurora version, where a burst of colour is added with baguette-cut sapphires and a glossy blue alligator strap.
Inspired by the revolutionary Cluster technique of setting gemstones developed by Harry Winston himself, the Avenue C Mini Lily Cluster features diamonds set in the shape of delicate lily petals, which bloom against an iridescent mother-of-pearl dial. Gorgeously feminine with a youthful touch, the watch is available in pink, brown, and black, among others.
And to celebrate the 20th anniversary of The Avenue, there is the Avenue C Mini Moonphase edition, in a shade of deep blue reminiscent of the famed Hope diamond that Mr Winston acquired and donated to the Smithsonian Institute. The beaded mother-of-pearl dial showcases brilliant- and baguette-cut diamonds, as well as a complication at 6 o’clock that portrays a moon journeying across a starlit night sky.
