A study in balance and contrasts, elegance and refinement, the new gérald genta Geneva Minute Repeater embodies the technical mastery and legacy of the famed watch designer
On the occasion of Geneva Watch Days 2025, gérald genta unveils the Minute Repeater, a refined, complicated and limited collector’s piece that pays homage to the intuitive and instinctive artistry of Mr Genta. Subtle yet powerful, impactful yet poetic, the Minute Repeater merges audacious elegance with the ultimate mechanical mastery – and favorite complication of Mr. Genta: the minute repeater.
Chiming watches were close to Mr Genta’s heart. In the 1980s he was among the few watchmakers creating minute repeaters, inspired by the challenge to perfect this most complex of mechanisms. In addition to launching several models, he also created an automatic minute repeater, a water resistant version and also combined the complication with a perpetual calendar.Quality of sound was key to Mr Genta, and he worked extensively on the case to capture the best sound. La Fabrique du Temps now channels that spirit of innovation with a completely new shape for the Minute Repeater.
Softly cushioned and infused with creative ingenuity and audacious elegance, the new shape revives gérald genta’s unmistakable design language for today, while celebrating proportion, softness, and balance.
The 40mm minute repeater is crafted in a yellow gold case paired with a lustrous onyx dial, celebrating Mr. Genta’s love for stone dials.
Remarkably thin at just 9.60mm and specifically designed to offer optimal acoustics, it beautifully marries elegance with mechanical complexity.
Starting with a blank sheet, Matthieu Hegi Artistic Director, conjured a new shape intended to embody the artistic dimension of Mr Genta’s repertoire while magnifying the acoustic of the minute repeater complication. “I wanted to capture the intuitive, instinctive genius and artistry of Mr. Genta,” explains Mr Hegi. The result is an almost magical object – a piece of art on the wrist for which only 10 pieces will be produced per year.
Celebrating Genta’s Legacy Through the Minute Repeater
The minute repeater was one of Mr. Genta’s most beloved complications, blending technical mastery with the pursuit of emotional resonance and beauty that were core to his approach.
The Maison Master Watchmakers Enrico Barbasini and Michel Navas have brought this spirit forward with the GG-002, a manual-winding minute repeater caliber developed entirely in-house at La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton.
Acoustic and sonic mastery were the key elements that Enrico Barbasini and Michel Navas considered for this watch, and the watch’s stainless steel hammers and gongs have received the utmost attention. Each gong has been manually tuned by ear and hand, and watchmakers cut and adjust each component to ensure the optimal vibration and amplitude. The gongs are then fixed to the case to further maximize sound propagation and reverberation throughout the piece. The Minute Repeater features a traditional gong with one revolution, and which emits an exceptionally clear and crystalline chime – exuding a notably high volume, ideal for a wristwatch.
Requiring more than four weeks to assemble a single movement, the caliber GG-002 has been finished to the highest standards of traditional Haute Horlogerie – including Côtes de Genève, hand-beveled angles throughout, and snailing detail on the base plate. Meanwhile, the inertia wheel has been crafted in an octagonal shape, a tribute to Mr. Genta’s favorite form. Boasting an 80-hour power reserve, the GG-002 also incorporates a bar click for a unique, emotive feel when winding the watch.
A case conceived like an instrument
Grounded in Mr. Genta’s love of form and smooth case design, free of any sharp edges, the cushion shape is a natural evolution of his signature octagonal form.
Achieving an extraordinary dimension of a mere 9.60mm thick, the Minute Repeater case is crafted for thoughtful and deliberate chime amplification. The ultra-thin case walls and internal architecture are deliberately designed to allow the chime to breathe and resonate with sonorous clarity, expressing its melodious essence. This recalls Mr. Genta’s own exacting criteria for a minute repeater, where sound quality was led by intensive work on the case, complemented by elegance on the wrist.
The case has been reduced to its absolute minimum – as little as 0.6mm at its thinnest point – while the sapphire crystal has been reduced from the typical 1mm thickness to 0.8mm. As Michel Navas explains: “It is a small watch, with very little leeway for enhanced sound propagation. We had to carefully consider how to optimize the sound, which led us to creating such a thin case.”
At the same time, in the spirit of Mr. Genta, this meticulous tuning is as much an aesthetic choice as a functional one. At 40mm, the Minute Repeater’s dimensions are designed to be as constrained as possible, to ensure perfect wearability and elegance.
Meanwhile, subtle contrasts are at the heart of the Minute Repeater’s case design.
Alternating brushed and polished surfaces offer a subtle yet deliberate interplay of light, enhancing the purity of the design. The case’s double gadroons pay tribute to Mr. Genta’s historical pieces, and come in polished gold, presenting a visually slim profile against the satin-brushed part of the case. The trigger is also polished and notably thin, following the watch’s shape and its sensorial architecture – yet is extremely tactile and easy to manipulate. A single-lug for attachment to a black leather strap further nods to historical Genta pieces, presenting a wider and shorter design that seamlessly blends with the case, celebrating the Minute Repeater’s unique form. Finally, the crown, topped with an onyx cabochon, not only echoes the slim profile with a refined cannelure finish, but also adds to the overall preciosity and refinement of the watch.
Finally, the profound depth of the onyx dial channels the watch’s audacious elegance. Rather than selecting a lacquer dial, Matthieu Hegi opted for the intense luster of onyx, which further embraces Mr Genta’s historical preference for hardstone dials. A black onyx dial was an obvious choice, adds Matthieu Hegi, especially when paired with 3N yellow gold – a tone that he says evoked “sunshine and the Mediterranean spirit, which was very Genta”. Yellow gold is also an ideal material for maximizing the sound and acoustics of the minute repeater, reiterateing the very essence of the new gérald genta Minute Repeater.
Amplifying the Minute Repeater’s subtle shape is the minute track, which Matthieu Hegi calls, “the very core of the watch’s design.” The minute track is crafted with an inner segment shaped as a circle, the indexes following this round profile, while the outer segment echoes the shape of the case. “We wanted to explore something that was not quite round – something that evoked the cushion – and achieved this by reimagining and playing with the design of the dial. The effect mixes up the shape and is subtly transformative. At first glance, one wonders if it is truly round, as the suggestion of a cushion is created.”
Ambitious yet discreet, architectural yet soft, vintage but modern while exuding technical mastery – the new gérald genta Minute Repeater is a synthesis of artistic heritage, sonic mastery and sculptural design, and a quietly, sophisticated piece that pays tribute to one of watchmaking’s greatest legends;
