Cartier Announces the Winners of its Watchmaking Talents of Tomorrow Prize

Today, at the legendary Musée International d’Horlogerie in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland, seven of the industry’s most promising young watchmakers took home Cartier’s prestigious Prize for Watchmaking Talents of Tomorrow.

Each winner received a Cartier watch and will be invited to explore the Maison’s universe. However, the two first prize-winners have also been offered the most coveted prize of all: an internship with the iconic brand. Here are the names you need to know.

You know Cartier for its rich history of crafting exceptional watches, jewelry, and other accessories. However, a core part of the brand’s heritage also lies in the preservation and passing down of the knowledge that brings the Maison’s beautiful wares to life.

This mission inspired Cartier to create its own network of institutes to facilitate education and ensure this expertise is passed on. The first of these came in 1993 with the Cartier Watchmaking Institute (IHC), located in Couvet, Switzerland. This facility has so far trained nearly 200 craftspeople by supporting apprentices as they learn all about watchmaking professions as well as the assembling of components.
 

Two years after the founding of the IHC, the institute launched a watchmaking prize specifically dedicated to young talent from across Europe. Now, in its monumental 27th edition, Cartier has just announced the recipients of the 2024 Watchmaking Talents of Tomorrow prize.

The 2024 brief for applicants hoping to win the Watchmaking Talents of Tomorrow prize required no small feat of ingenuity. These aspiring watchmakers were tasked with reinterpreting one of Cartier’s most emblematic designs: the carriage clock.

Originating in 18th-century France, the carriage clock was a portable timekeeper notable for its combination of artistic styling and unique mechanisms. In addition to crafting a clock in this style, applicants had to adhere to the theme “Magic of the Senses.”
 

After an initial selection based on sketches, texts, and presentation videos, eleven finalists were chosen. These lucky few then had, with support from a mentor, eighty hours over a period of two months to complete their proposed watchmaking project.

In the end, only seven were awarded the coveted prize across the contest’s two categories: Apprentices and Technicians.

Today, the jury of some of the most influential players in the watch industry gathered to present the 2024 Cartier Prize for Watchmaking Talents of Tomorrow: Nathalie Marielloni, Assistant Curator of the Musée International D’Horlogerie; Roy Davidoff, co-founder of Roy & Sacha Davidoff SA; Pascal Ravessoud, Vice-President of the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie; Pascale Lepeu, Director of the Cartier Collection; and legendary independent watchmaker Kari Voutilainen.

First prize in the Apprentice category went to Marta Maziers, from the IATA in Namur, Belgium, for her project La Reine du Temps, a watchmaking creation shining a light on the universe of bees.
 

Alternatively, first prize in the Technicians category went to Hugo Mandrillon, from the Lycée Edgar Faure in Morteau, France, for his telescopic creation Œil du Temps that draws inspiration from the sixth sense and plays with optical effects.
 

Second and third place prizes in both categories went to Yann Mayer of the Hublot Training Centre for Inverso, Coline Riondet of the Lycée Edgar Faure de Morteau for Présentoir à Parfum, Samuel Pauly of the Lycée Jean Jaurès de Rennes for Nefertum, and Simon Girard of the Lycée Jean Jaurès de Rennes for Ballet Floral.