We are proud to announce our first collaboration with independent watchmaker Sylvain Pinaud, the Chronograph Monopoussoir Sylvain Pinaud x Massena LAB, a handcrafted monopusher chronograph, which is limited to only ten pieces.
Years before his win at the 2022 GPHG (Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève), where he was awarded that year’s “Horological Revelation” Prize, Sylvain Pinaud crossed paths with William Massena at a collectors event in Geneva. Pinaud’s avant-garde monopusher chronograph, cased in titanium, instantly caught Massena’s imagination.
Reflecting on their first meeting, Massena recalls:
“When I held Sylvain’s chronograph, it was pure magic. Hearing Sylvain recount the timepiece’s origin story—and how he had crafted it to compete in the prestigious Meilleurs Ouvriers de France (MOF) competition—only sealed the deal.
If you live outside of France, you may not be familiar with the MOF, but inside France, it is famous. About every four years, a competition is held to honor the best of the nation’s craftspeople, or ouvriers, in French. Entrants compete in various categories ranging from the culinary arts to metal and stoneworking. When Sylvain won his MOF with his Chronograph Monopoussoir, it almost instantly elevated him to his place among today’s most talented and exciting independent watchmakers. His win at the GPHG in 2022 only cemented this position.”
After seeing the watch in the metal, William asked Sylvain if he could place an order for himself but with a revised case design. What started as a personal commission turned into a professional project when many of Massena’s friends in the collector community expressed interest in acquiring a similar watch from Pinaud. The spark of collaboration ignited, and the Chronograph Monopoussoir Sylvain Pinaud x Massena LAB was born. From a personal muse to a shared project, Pinaud’s ingenuity and Massena’s vision coalesced into horological artistry.
Technical marvel meets aesthetic elegance in this timepiece, crafted almost entirely by hand in the atelier of Sylvain Pinaud in Sainte-Croix, Switzerland. The watch is powered by a hand-wound movement with a fully integrated, column-wheel chronograph with a horizontal clutch, which can be started; paused; and reset using a single pusher located discreetly at the crown. The movement’s integrated chronograph complication, hand-finished by the watchmaker himself, is left exposed on the dial side and is a delight to observe.
The dial, created by Comblémine SA—the dial manufacture owned by the renowned watchmaker Kari Voutilainen—is a fusion of modern design with vintage aesthetics inspired by maritime chronometers.
Sapphire windows on the sides of the titanium case, as well as a sapphire caseback, invite glances of the dial and of the movement from almost every angle—a glimpse into the careful labor and artistry which characterize a Sylvain Pinaud timepiece.
The watch is fitted with a strap by Jean Rousseau Paris in aged calfskin with a crocodile lining.
The Chronograph Monopoussoir Sylvain Pinaud x Massena LAB is limited to ten pieces, with production limited to three pieces each year. Price: CHF 130,000.
