Vanguard
Line History
Presented in 2013, the Vanguard was born as a sporty, contemporary reinterpretation of the historic Cintrée Curvex case: it keeps the same four-curved-axis construction that made the brand famous starting in 1991, but pushes it toward a more essential, "lugless" aesthetic, openly inspired by the "Streamline Moderne" architectural style widespread in the 1920s and 1930s, made of aerodynamic lines and continuous surfaces.
The Vanguard's most distinctive construction feature is the insert — in rubber or, on some variants such as Line Cut and Night Cut, in resin — that separates the front and back of the case, creating a "split" structure that emphasizes the line's sporty character. The strap, often in alligator or rubber, is integrated into the case profile so as to ideally continue its curvature, while the applied numerals, hand-finished between satin and polished surfaces, remain a distinctive element common to all versions.
Over the years the Vanguard has expanded into numerous sub-collections — including Classical, Tourbillon, Grand Date, Skeleton, Gravity and the nautical Yachting, as well as reissues of the famous Crazy Hours module — becoming, together with the Cintrée Curvex, one of the two major families around which the brand's men's catalog is now built, produced entirely at the Genthod manufacture.
Technical Specifications
Main Executions
On the Vanguard Gravity, presented in 2015, the tourbillon cage abandons the traditional circular shape in favor of an elliptical aluminum structure that completes a full rotation every 60 seconds: a solution designed to offset the effect of gravity while keeping the sporty aesthetic typical of the line.