Panerai recruits artists, photographers for Instagram series on design

March 1, 2018

Panerai uses photography to enhance the appeal of its watches. Image credit: Oficine Panerai

Italian watchmaker Oficine Panerai is rolling out a social media campaign focused on the transformative power of photography.

The brand's Paneraitrats campaign, broken up into chapters on the brand’s Instagram page, follows multiple photographers and lovers of design and imagery as they speak about the ways that images and photography intersect with the world of fine watches. In doing so, Panerai is elevating the status of its watches from mere objects to works of art.

Art and design
Panerai’s watches are meticulously designed objects, each one custom made with an eye for detail.

In the brand’s latest social campaign, its watches’ ornate and exact designs are highlighted and compared to similar feats of craftsmanship in photography, architecture and other forms of design.

In Paneraitraits, the brand follows multiple creative professionals and photographers as they catalogue the various sights and sounds of their respective cities and what they look for in an ideal image or piece of design.

Episode two of Paneraitraits. Image credit: Oficine Panerai

In episode one, photographer Jason Peterson wanders through New York, expounding on his ideas of light and shadow and how the two interplay. All the while, the Panerai Luminor Due is worn on his wrist.

Episode two follows Costas Voyatzis, a blogger, designer and art curator, as he travels through Milan, speaking about how he hungers for finding the finest little details in great works of design. During his episode, he wears the Radiomir 1940 3 Days Automatic watch.

The two men, and others who will feature in future episodes of Paneraitraits, are implicitly drawing a connection between the worlds of photography and art curating and the exquisite designs of Panerai’s watches.

Italian watches
Panerai’s commitment to design can be seen in a number of its recent efforts.

For example, in 2016, Panerai rethought the clock by sponsoring a large-scale installation at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum.

In partnership with design duo Glithero, “The Green Room” turned the museum’s six-story staircase into a timekeeping mechanism with moving parts that rotated in minute increments. Part of the London Design Festival, the installation saw more eyes as London Fashion Week and numerous design events took place in the city (see story).

Similarly, Panerai reflected on its past and gave a glimpse at its future in an exhibit at Museo Marino Marini in Florence.

Paneraitraits. Image credit: Panerai

“Panerai – Dive Into Time” ran from May 18-21, 2016, with 10,800 square meters of exhibit space showing never before shown archival pieces, as well as a first look at the newest models from the brand. While it is important for heritage brands to look back on their history, museum exhibits can also provide a space to reaffirm their relevancy today and tomorrow (see story).

Panerai’s status as an Italian watchmaker also places it in outside the majority of luxury watches, which are produced in Switzerland. The Swiss watch industry is beginning 2018 on a positive note, with exports achieving double-digit growth year-over-year.

Further evidence of the timepiece sector’s turnaround, the value of Swiss watches exported in January was 1.6 billion francs, or about $1.7 billion at current exchange, up 12.6 percent from 2017. Following difficult times, the watch sector appears to be bouncing back, thanks partly to growth in Asia (see story).

The Paneraitraits initiative shows that the brand is willing to engage with a larger audience, bringing in high-profile artists and designers to help sell its watches as works of art in themselves.

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Panerai recruits artists, photographers for Instagram series on design

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