Saint Laurent's Girard-Perregaux team-up ain't your average luxury watch collaboration. This is a curious collaboration that speaks to creative director Anthony Vaccarello's far-reaching interests.
Of course, Saint Laurent loves a good accessory. From Happy Meal boxes and electric kids cars to branded bikes and Polaroid cameras, Saint Laurent always has a deep assortment of seemingly random one-offs on tap.
That Vaccarello would elect to put Saint Laurent's stamp on Girard-Perregaux's luxury timepiece is indicative of his desire to continue exploring unconventional territory through Saint Laurent's Rive Droite sub-label.
Currently available on Saint Laurent's website for $6,700, the Saint Laurent Girard-Perregaux Casquette 2.0 timepiece doesn't look like most other high-end watches.
Based on Girard-Perregaux's original Casquette, a before-its-time watch from the '70s that minimized the watch face to a tiny LED display at the top of a boxy case.
It's funny that despite Girard-Perregaux's age — founded in 1791, the Swiss watchmaker is one of the oldest still-functioning manufactures around — it so capably created one of the watch world's wildest, most forward-thinking designs.
Girard-Perregaux's Casquette doesn't really look like anything else on the market, what with its squat case and minute display. It better resembles a high-end calculator watch than a luxury timepiece but don't be mistaken: this is one fine piece of watchmaking.
Saint Laurent's take on Girard-Perregaux's Casquette 2.0 is made of black ceramic and PVD-treated grade 5 titanium to match, a tangible manifestation of Saint Laurent's slick aesthetic.
Not a lot of digital watches deserve the moniker of "haute horologie" but Girard-Perregaux's Casquette ain't a lot of digital watches.
