Van Bergen 1795 brings Alex Righetto’s portrait to Monaco

When Alex Righetto’s painted portrait commanded the screens of Times Square, few could have imagined its next incarnation would arrive at the wrist. Yet Van Bergen 1795, the Dutch watchmaking house founded in 1795, has translated the artist’s vision into haute horlogerie, creating a collection that moves the canvas into the language of mechanical time.

Mona Lisa’s Daughter comprises eighteen pieces in total. At the pinnacle sit three Pièces Uniques, their dials and rotors hand painted individually by Righetto himself. A further fifteen numbered pieces follow in rose, yellow and white gold, each rotor similarly rendered by the artist’s hand. The collection emerges as a rare convergence of fine art and fine watchmaking, where pigment and steel collaborate within the confined geometry of a watch movement.

The aesthetic carries Righetto’s signature into unexpected territory. Where his work filled the urban landscape of Manhattan, it now occupies the intimate space of a wrist, visible only to those near enough to witness it. The rotors, those oscillating weights that catch and release energy, become miniature canvases that spin with each gesture of the wearer’s arm. It is a dialogue between motion and permanence, between the artist’s mark and the mechanism’s purpose.

Van Bergen 1795 will present the collection in Monaco in July 2027, positioning itself among the calendar’s most discerning horological occasions. The house, with its commitment to craft and its history of bespoke creation, offers something that transcends the conventional watch release: a numbered edition that honours both the artist’s vision and the watchmaker’s discipline.

Those seeking to acquire a piece of this collaboration may contact Van Bergen 1795 directly through their atelier. Each timepiece arrives as a certificate of its individual hand painted provenance.

Imagery courtesy of Van Bergen 1795 (@vanbergen1795).