This watch was inspired by the famous painting by Leonardo da Vinci, the Mona Lisa, painted between 1503 and 1507 and kept at the Louvre museum.
The artist, seeming to predict the portrait’s success, wrote:
Do you not see that among human beauties, it is the beautiful face that stops the passers-by and not the rich ornaments…
The Gioconda was painted on a thin poplar wood panel and is considered to be Leonardo da Vinci’s masterpiece. The subtle effects of the light on the flesh and the quality of the back-ground emphasise the beauty of the astonishingly realistic face.
The painter prepared his panel with several layers of coating. He drew the motive then started the oil-painting, with additional very diluted petrol and superimposing uncountable layers of transparent colours that will enable him to constantly affine the traits. These glazes contribute to the emphasising of the light and shadow effects on a perfect imitation of the flesh of the face, following a technique the artist called “sfumato”.
