When Philippe Delhotal talks about watches, he doesn’t start with status, resale value or any of the usual horological chest-beating. Quite the opposite. He talks about emotion, simplicity and objects that make us feel a little less like overwhelmed adults trapped inside an email inbox. As Creative Director of Hermès Horloger, he has helped build a watchmaking language that is very Hermès: technically serious, visually light, and not particularly interested in shouting about either.

Delhotal joined Hermès in 2008, after a career shaped by watchmaking, design, jewelry and fashion — which is another way of saying he doesn’t look at a watch as just a tiny machine with a strap. For him, the movement matters, of course, but so does the story, the material, the mood, the way the object behaves on the wrist. A watch, in his world, should do more than tell you that you are late.

In our conversation, we talk about the new Slim d’Hermès Squelette Lune and the Arceau Samarcande, two pieces that manage to be technically complicated without looking like they are trying to win an engineering argument. We also discuss younger collectors, the appeal of objects that feel real in a hyper-digital world, and why artificial intelligence can be useful — but also slightly alarming when robots start running marathons next to humans.

— First of all, congratulations on all the novelties you showed during Watches and Wonders. Incredible, as always. After Watches and Wonders, what do you think people are really looking for in watches today? Is it technical performance, an emotional connection, or simple beauty in a very noisy world?

— I would say, to begin with, that every person, every client, every owner of a watch, is looking for or is attached to something different in their watch. You can have very technical collectors who are truly attached to the technical side and who will choose a watch because there is a very particular technique. Others are more sensitive to the creation, to the emotion, to the story. And then there are people who like to mix both: they look at the technical parameters, of course, but also at the creation.

For me, the watch is an object of discovery. Watchmaking offers a huge territory of expression. There is a technical dimension, but also an aesthetic and creative one. That is what I really like about watchmaking: this freedom to create while also adding complications.

And it is true, to answer the question, that we are living in a world that is a little noisy and complicated, sometimes even worrying. I think the fact of going back to something more essential, such as wearing a watch, is reassuring. At the moment, we need to find things that are more authentic, more natural, more true. The world of watches, and the aesthetics of these timepieces, can bring a little dignity, calm and serenity of mind.

— Talking about the novelties you presented during the fair, the Slim d’Hermès Squelette Lune feels very technical, but at the same time incredibly light and poetic. How difficult is it to balance mechanical complexity with visual simplicity? As you said, some people are into technicalities, performance and engineering, while others are after quiet visual luxury.

— It is always complicated to find the right balance between the technique, the aesthetic and what we want to say with the story of the watch. A skeleton watch can be a technical performance, because of course there are brands that make skeleton watches that are very airy, very openworked. We try to find a compromise between the aesthetic of our watch and the technical quality we want to offer.

That balance begins with the work between the designers and the product team. Everyone working on the watch brings something, whether it is linked to the story or to the technical parameters. They work together so that the result looks like what we do at Hermès, while still having real technical performance.

It is very complicated to do simple things. This is something Hermès is very attached to: giving an object a simple expression while sometimes having very important technical characteristics. We try to do simple things, but still with the technical performance, the design and the story behind them.

— Talking about the story behind every watch, I am very interested in hearing the story behind the Arceau Samarcande, because it feels almost dreamlike. It isn’t a traditional watch; it is an object that carries memories and allows you to travel. I am curious about the emotional starting point behind this piece, the overall story, and how it was created.

— The source of Samarcande was first an idea: to create a very small minute repeater, among the smallest minute repeaters, with an automatic movement and three hammers. That was the first idea. It wasn’t necessarily a dreamlike starting point; it was a more technical idea.

But then, of course, we also had to be a little different visually. That is why we wanted to integrate this horse’s head, which allows us to see the movement beneath. We also wanted to bring in a story around crystal, because crystal is part of the history of the Hermès maison through the Saint-Louis crystal manufacture. Through its history and material, crystal brings more emotion than a traditional dial.

Visually, when you see this horse’s head in the Arceau Samarcande, it feels natural for Hermès to make this kind of dial. It is simple; it isn’t visually complicated. It is technically complicated, but not visually complicated. What we are looking for at Hermès is to bring this simplicity to the object, not necessarily to make it more complex. The goal was to bring something more to the watch: a simple object, with all the history behind it and all the technical challenges required to create it.

— We have talked a lot about simplicity and the emotions behind every watch. In my opinion, people today are using watches partly as a form of escapism, because we live in a hyper-digital everyday life and we are surrounded by gadgets. Do you agree that a watch can be a kind of escape, bringing you back to heritage, provenance and emotion instead of performance and being alerted all the time?

— Yes, of course. It is evident, and I think it is becoming more and more true. We are in a digital world, which is very good, of course, and it brings many positive things. But I think people need to keep a little distance from it and be with authentic objects, rather than only with this completely artificial world of digital technology and artificial intelligence. People aren’t robots.

I think we all need, each in our own way, to be attached to values: emotional values, social values and other values. We need moments when we can stop, reflect and escape. Watches — and you could also include jewelry — are important objects because they do us good. They are objects we need, particularly at Hermès.

It is part of the mission of Hermès to bring our clients a way of approaching objects differently. It is about making something, being happy to have it, being happy to place it somewhere at home. The object should bring a certain quality of life to the individual, in a life that isn’t always easy.

— I think this aligns quite well with what younger collectors seem to be obsessed with. Younger collectors aren’t looking for traditional status symbols anymore; they are more interested in individuality and storytelling. It seems that Hermès approaches watch creation, and the creation of all its objects, in exactly this way. It is partly about heritage and provenance, but even more about individuality and storytelling than just technicalities or creating something expensive to show off status.

— Yes, it is true that the younger generations are perhaps very interesting in this way. First of all, we now have a whole population of young collectors arriving. They are passionate and knowledgeable, and that is rather reassuring, because it means the objects we create speak to them, and there will be a future for these objects.

The second thing is that they are perhaps looking for more transparency around the object: why we made it, what the meaning of its creation is, and how it was made. There is a great curiosity on their part. I have been surprised, during appointments in different countries, to meet these young collectors who are passionate and very interested in the object itself, more than simply in collecting a large number of watches.

— Moving to you personally: your career moves between watchmaking, fashion, jewellery and design. How much has this multidisciplinary background shaped the way you see watches today?

— It has helped me a great deal. People often ask me whether, if I could do it again today, I would follow the same path. I would say yes, 95 per cent. This profession has offered me something extraordinary, both in terms of discovering watchmaking and in terms of encounters.

The meetings, the journeys, the discovery of these worlds and industries have of course helped me in my career. Even now, I still find things that give me sensitivity and a vision: a vision of a product, an exercise, even a profession. We continue to learn throughout our careers.

For me, this career has been extraordinary. I wish the younger generations who want to begin in design and the artistic world could follow the same kind of path I have followed. Artistic professions are extraordinary. They are satisfying because they bring something to you, and they carry a certain form of truth.

Compared, perhaps, with artificial intelligence, which can certainly be useful — and this is not a criticism — it can sometimes feel too mechanical, too electronic, too superficial. I think we also need to make mistakes in life, and not always count on things that are dictated or translated by artificial intelligence. Mistakes help us learn, evolve and create.

— What current trends in watchmaking generally interest you, and which ones do you think the industry is overdoing right now? I guess AI might be one of them.

— No, I find that watchmaking has an extraordinary capacity to reinvent itself. It is absolutely extraordinary to come to the Geneva salon and see so much creativity, so much audacity. Of course, there is more audacity among some brands than others, but watchmaking has this creative ability to give us emotions every year that we weren’t expecting.

That is why I find it an extraordinary profession. I have the impression that it is endless. There is always something to show, always something to do. That comes from the talent and creativity of the people who work in watchmaking.

As for trends I like less, there was a period with very large watches, with a lot going on, very loaded, with diamonds everywhere. Again, it isn’t a criticism. It is like that, and there were obviously people who bought them. But yes, I think we perhaps went a little too far. Maybe that is my minimalist side speaking.

More broadly, I think we are moving from one period to another, where the ostentatious side is disappearing a little. People are tired of logos, of loud signs, of a certain kind of “bling-bling”. There is a return to more essential things, particularly in a complicated world like today’s.

— My last question for today is: after decades in watchmaking, what still makes you personally and emotionally excited about creating a new watch?

— The act of creating a new watch is very exciting because it means bringing something new, looking for new solutions and meeting new people. It is all this emulation that keeps the motivation alive. Since I have worked in watchmaking, I can say that I have never been tired of the profession I do.

There are always new things and always discoveries to make. That is the richness of this profession, and that is why I have stayed in it for so long. I think there is no limit to creativity. Each year, each period, brings new ideas and new innovations, and that is the beauty of creating an object. I am speaking not only about watches, but about objects themselves. There is joy in discovery.

It is also important for us to be able to speak about our profession and our passion with people like you, with journalists, and to have this connection. It allows us to say that watchmaking is alive and well, and that the tradition will continue, also thanks to the younger generations.