The history of the Tank is that of the evolution of an idea that has gone through different episodes since its first creation in 1917. One of them, the Tank Francaise Presented in 1996, it is one of his stellar appearances. At that time, the great innovation was found in its metallic bracelet that provided continuity to the case; a monobloc design, which Cartier now reinterprets with a more radical style. A new approach, aesthetic and ergonomic, where the ultra-sharp lines of the watch are more dynamic and in which a large creation in steel and automatic movement is added to an offer where yellow gold, with or without diamonds, is the other protagonist.
Detalles Tank
With or without diamonds, gold is the other great protagonist of this new Tank Française.
At first glance, everything seems the same, but there are some subtle differences that give it a contemporary touch, but at the same time respectful of an aesthetic thate broke the mold and elevated the iconic character of the Tank line. A first distinctive detail is found in the stretchers, which are now more domed. A second element that has evolved is the crown, which is now embedded so that it is an extension of the ‘drawing’ that the stretchers make. In this new creation there is another distinctive element, and that is that the finishes are mostly satin, while the face of the watch presents a sunray effect. One last detail: the bracelet forms a compact and perfectly flexible chain, which is part of the origins of this collection and therefore offers total continuity with the case. The bracelet whose links interlock seamlessly has been redesigned to create a curve. Pure and ergonomic, it adapts to any wrist.
dialogue in time
Quite a challenge that required 13,000 hours of development, 460 hours of digital simulations and 340 hours of testing and analysis to ensure its resistance. For the presentation in society of this new and contemporary commitment of the Tank, a couple of actors have been used who perfectly represent that fusion of the Parisian style that has always defined this line of the Tank, with that new modern “lifestyle” that, Of course, it adopts sophistication as one of its essential elements. they are Catherine Deneuve y Rami Malek, and the setting could not be other than Paris. Two generations of performers who make up a fantastic staging of the values of Tank Française, because times change, but the elegance of Tank, Rami Malek and Catherine Deneuve, who is the incarnation of French elegance, remains intact.
icon and talent
He Tank Francaise Here he acts as a link between two actors who represent different moments in cinema, but who are united by a special bond, which is drawn in the scene in which they meet while crossing the Alexandre III bridge, in an allegory of yesterday and today. . A close view, perfectly directed by British filmmaker Guy Ritchie. In short, the film becomes, on the one hand, a tribute to cinema and, on the other, to the creative freedom that defines Cartier. Something confirmed by Arnaud Carrez, Senior Vice President Chief Marketing Officer: “This film reflects Cartier’s vision of watchmaking and the timelessness of his creations. It is a journey through time in which the past and the present merge, as is the case with the Tank Française, an icon of yesterday and today. It is also about the fusion of the French style, symbolized by the Tank and by Catherine Deneuve, and the avant-garde, mythical and free cinema in which Rami Malek displays his talent”.
Catherine Deneuve and Rami Malek star in an allegory of yesterday and today. A close vision, directed by the British Guy Ritchie, and which is also a tribute to cinema and, on the other, to the creative freedom that defines Cartier.
Let’s not forget that the Tank Française is the expression of a certain avant-garde, undoubtedly a symbol of the creativity of Paris, whose cultural geography so accurately captured the nouvelle vague, and which knows how to endure as one of the most stylish references of those derived from that initial Tank. Simply captivating, it should be said that there is a word that Malek did not stop exclaiming during filming and that can also be applied to the renewed French Tank: Well done.
Tank History
There is no doubt that one of the elements that distinguishes the Tank is its ability to reinvent itself and survive all eras, largely due to its successful and intelligent design. The creation of the first Tank dates from 1917, consequence of the vision of Louis Cartier around the proposals of form. At the beginning of the 20th century, he had already tried to refine the shapes and introduce the circle of the hours on the line of the bracelet, something that he showed at Santos. Following in its wake, the Tank offers a straight line, where the case, the hooks and the bracelet become a unit. In 1922, the house offers a new interpretation that responds to the name of Tank Louis Cartiery where the box is elongated, the stretchers are stylized and the angles are softened.
permanent evolution
We would have to wait a few more years, until 1977, to witness an evolution of the line, the one that stars the Tank Must. The Must de Cartier line is in full swing and at Cartier they decided to launch a collection of watches that takes the shape of the Tank Louis Cartier. Before reaching the birth of the Tank Francaisearrives in 1988 the american tank, characterized by the compact rectangle of its curved case and by the more massive dial, which are in keeping with the dynamism of the time. And the year 1996 arrives, when this line emerges, which has always been characterized by its very French spirit, which moves between classicism and stylistic freedom. As summed up by Marie-Laure Cérède, creative director of Cartier Jewelry and Watches. “The new Tank Française reflects a creative conviction: as in the case of a carved stone from which you want to recover its pure state, it was a question of capturing its radical form, simplifying its essential lines and stripping them of all adornment to return to the genesis of the myth”.
