THE HISTORY OF BLANCPAIN

Only the cream of the crop work at the
workshops where Blancpain calibres
are produced. In Le Brassus, La Ferme is
indisputably a breeding ground for talent.
Far from being gratuitous or exaggerated,
this affirmation has once again been
confirmed with Marie-Laure, Anaïs and
Gwenaëlle. In order to get to know them
better, let us start with a short tour of Paris,
or more precisely, the prestigious Ecole
Boulle where the three engravers were
trained.
Founded in 1886, a contemporary of the
industrial revolution, Ecole Boulle crossed
over into the 20th century and remains a
The engravers display complete
mastery of the entire process from the
first drawing to the final creation.
mythical place of tradition and innovation as
well as a melting pot in which know-how is
developed – fueled by the experience of
age-old gestures. In a way, the school has
simultaneously become a conservatory of
gestures and artisan knowledge, in the
noble sense of the term. It is a true laboratory
of creation, in the broader sense of what the
concept of design encompasses today.
Tradition, know-how, creation, age-old
gestures … the vocabulary fits perfectly with
that of fine watchmaking. Such prized words
also suggest that the workbenches at the
Paris school of art are not destined for just
anybody, just like the magnificent work-
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benches that bear the Blancpain mark, for
that matter. Many are called; few are chosen.
You be the judge. Out of three thousand,
five hundred applicants, in general
young students who already have a baccalaureate
in applied arts for example, six
hundred applications make it past the first
hurdle. After a second round, fewer than
two hundred will be allowed to take the
competitive entrance exam. In the end,
twenty-four students will cross the threshold
of the Ecole Boulle, and not one more.
That's barely a mere ten percent of applicants!
We were not exaggerating when we
said “only the cream of the crop ...”
WE WERE NOT EXAGGERATING WHEN WE SAID
“ONLY THE CREAM OF THE CROP ...”.