Latest news with #Zenith
South China Morning Post
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- South China Morning Post
Blue watches are back – in fresh shades, materials and textures: here's our rundown of the models that matter most from Rolex, Chanel, Vacheron Constantin, Parmigiani Fleurier, Hermès and Dior
If one thing stood out at Watches and Wonders 2025 , it was the return of blue. While the colour has long been a favourite in horology, this year's releases showed how brands are pushing the palette further, delivering unexpected textures, materials and finishes – from icy platinum to matte ceramic and pearly lacquer. Rolex's most talked-about launch, the new Land-Dweller, may have made headlines for its technical leap – the brand-new calibre 7135 and patented Dynapulse escapement – but aesthetically, all eyes were on the ice blue dial of ref. 127336. Reserved for platinum models, this signature hue now appears with a honeycomb pattern and satin finish, giving the brand's first all-new line since the Sky-Dweller in 2012 a dressier edge. The watchmaker also unveiled a blue-dial version of the Oyster Perpetual, available in case sizes ranging from 28mm to 41mm. Close-up of the ice blue dial of the Rolex Oyster Perpetual Land-Dweller 40. Photo: Handout Advertisement The Zenith G.F.J. was close behind as a collector's favourite. Released to celebrate the brand's 160th anniversary and to honour founder Georges Favre-Jacot, the 39mm limited edition features a lapis lazuli dial with a mother-of-pearl centre seconds sub-dial and a platinum case with a bracelet engraved in a brick motif. Its movement, the calibre 135, dominated observatory accuracy competitions in the 1950s and now returns with modern upgrades, including a 72-hour power reserve. 'Blue has always been a defining element of Zenith's identity, symbolising our connection to the sky and the pioneering spirit that has driven us for 160 years,' says CEO Benoit de Clerck. To celebrate that legacy, the brand also launched a trio of bright blue ceramic chronographs: the Chronomaster Sport, Defy Skyline Chronograph and Pilot Big Date Flyback. 'More than a tribute to our heritage, these timepieces embody the spirit of innovation and craftsmanship that continue to shape the future of our maison. We are proud to celebrate this anniversary with such a bold and meaningful creation,' he adds. Parmigiani Fleurier Toric Quantième Perpétuel in platinum. Photo: Handout From deep blue lapis to sky tones, Parmigiani Fleurier's latest release explored the palette's softer side. The Toric Quantième Perpétuel in Morning Blue leans into understatement with a beautifully hand-grained dial in a pale, powdery blue. The 40.6mm case is framed by the Toric's signature knurled bezel, sculpted in platinum, with a clean coaxial calendar layout. Chopard Alpine Eagle 41 XP CS in platinum. Photo: Handout Chopard also refined its approach to blue. The new Alpine Eagle 41 XP CS, housed in platinum with an ultra-slim 8mm profile, features what the brand calls its Shades of Ice dial – a textured radial pattern inspired by an eagle's iris, rendered in glacial blue. The CS (Central Seconds) model features a bold arrow-tipped central seconds hand and baton indices. The movement – a COSC-certified, Poinçon de Genève-stamped calibre 96.42-L – is powered by a platinum micro-rotor and is visible through the sapphire caseback. Chanel J12 Bleu X-Ray. Photo: Handout
New York Post
19-07-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Post
Iga Swiatek's excessive celebration evokes memories of infamous Wimbledon farce
I wasn't born a cynic, let alone a skeptic. Believing what I was told — especially as delivered through our black-and-white, wait-to-warm-up Zenith — I was fully sold on Mr. Green Jeans' overalls being green, like the Red Sox's new uniforms. Covering sports has made me cynical. I even eye the celebrations of Wimbledon victors with a conditioned suspicion. Last Saturday, after Iga Swiatek crushed Amanda Anisimova 6-0, 6-0 in 57 minutes to win her sixth major and first Wimbledon, Swiatek's response after the last point seemed, well, excessive — as if she were putting on a show for photographers, sponsors and all gathered media. Advertisement It seemed, as they say over there, that the pudding was overly egged, as if the match's foregone conclusion ended an epic, hard-fought marathon. She threw herself on the ground, face up, fists clenched in dramatic flamboyance — as if she didn't know this match was something of a walkover farce.
Sydney Morning Herald
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
Homegrown hits: the best new Australian music to hear this month
Evans Robson Quartet, Zenith Some people hate pigeons, but in flight a flock can mesmerise with their abrupt turns, take-offs and landings, without ever banging wings. How clumsy we seem, by comparison. Well, not all. Saxophonists Sandy Evans and Andrew Robson, bassist Brett Hirst and drummer Hamish Stuart can curl and twist around each other in musical flight, with a similar capacity to avoid collisions. This is a key secret of jazz at its highest level: playing around each other, without needing constant points of convergence. The cause is aided in this band by the absence of a chordal instrument, and the consequent expanses of vacant space in the music's midrange. Watussi Dreaming, for example, is just a bent blues in essence, but give it a polyrhythmic quality and more exotic scalar options, and suddenly, in the hands of these players, it becomes open-ended and unpredictable. Even more open is Evans' The Big Merino, which reminds me of something her beloved old band, Clarion Fracture Zone, might have played. Melodically zany, it lurches along over a half-time backbeat that Stuart unwinds behind the solos, so the horns are jerked and twitched like marionettes by the groove. Evans (on tenor) and Robson (baritone) respond with improvisations packed with whacky interval leaps and slurring asides, while Stuart's subsequent solo is like the soundtrack for a slapstick routine. Then, to keep the surprises coming, suddenly there's Robson proving to haunted school children everywhere what an iridescent instrument the descant recorder can be. The piece, his own Tea Horse Road – to these ears as evocative of Native American music as it is of the titular ancient Chinese trade route – rides on Hirst's bouncy riff and Stuart's shakers and hand-drumming, and has a skimming solo from Evans' soprano. Simpler rhythmic options are also embraced, as on Evans' slow, soulful tribute to the late Archie Roach, For Archie. Here the bass and drums lay down a straightforward 3/4 groove, across which the saxophones testify like true believers, all preceded by Hirst offering one of his typically supple and heartfelt solos. For Archie also has a cousin in Robson's lazy-day Lucky Jim, featuring the brawn of his baritone. The boppish The Running Tide (by Evans) is reminiscent of Charles Mingus' work, with its marvellous deployment of accelerations and decelerations. It boasts a seething, bubbling dialogue between the saxophones, before compelling solo statements from both bass and drums. They end with the aptly titled Cry to the Waning Moon, which reinforces the impression that Hirst's bass has never been better recorded, with sumptuous low notes and a singing tone higher up. Slow and lonesome, the melody is taken by Robson's alto and harmonised by Evans' tenor. This could well become my favourite composition on an album packed with strong ones from both leaders and with a wealth of slippery dialogues between four master musical conversationalists. John Shand
The Age
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Age
Homegrown hits: the best new Australian music to hear this month
Evans Robson Quartet, Zenith Some people hate pigeons, but in flight a flock can mesmerise with their abrupt turns, take-offs and landings, without ever banging wings. How clumsy we seem, by comparison. Well, not all. Saxophonists Sandy Evans and Andrew Robson, bassist Brett Hirst and drummer Hamish Stuart can curl and twist around each other in musical flight, with a similar capacity to avoid collisions. This is a key secret of jazz at its highest level: playing around each other, without needing constant points of convergence. The cause is aided in this band by the absence of a chordal instrument, and the consequent expanses of vacant space in the music's midrange. Watussi Dreaming, for example, is just a bent blues in essence, but give it a polyrhythmic quality and more exotic scalar options, and suddenly, in the hands of these players, it becomes open-ended and unpredictable. Even more open is Evans' The Big Merino, which reminds me of something her beloved old band, Clarion Fracture Zone, might have played. Melodically zany, it lurches along over a half-time backbeat that Stuart unwinds behind the solos, so the horns are jerked and twitched like marionettes by the groove. Evans (on tenor) and Robson (baritone) respond with improvisations packed with whacky interval leaps and slurring asides, while Stuart's subsequent solo is like the soundtrack for a slapstick routine. Then, to keep the surprises coming, suddenly there's Robson proving to haunted school children everywhere what an iridescent instrument the descant recorder can be. The piece, his own Tea Horse Road – to these ears as evocative of Native American music as it is of the titular ancient Chinese trade route – rides on Hirst's bouncy riff and Stuart's shakers and hand-drumming, and has a skimming solo from Evans' soprano. Simpler rhythmic options are also embraced, as on Evans' slow, soulful tribute to the late Archie Roach, For Archie. Here the bass and drums lay down a straightforward 3/4 groove, across which the saxophones testify like true believers, all preceded by Hirst offering one of his typically supple and heartfelt solos. For Archie also has a cousin in Robson's lazy-day Lucky Jim, featuring the brawn of his baritone. The boppish The Running Tide (by Evans) is reminiscent of Charles Mingus' work, with its marvellous deployment of accelerations and decelerations. It boasts a seething, bubbling dialogue between the saxophones, before compelling solo statements from both bass and drums. They end with the aptly titled Cry to the Waning Moon, which reinforces the impression that Hirst's bass has never been better recorded, with sumptuous low notes and a singing tone higher up. Slow and lonesome, the melody is taken by Robson's alto and harmonised by Evans' tenor. This could well become my favourite composition on an album packed with strong ones from both leaders and with a wealth of slippery dialogues between four master musical conversationalists. John Shand
Stuff.tv
04-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Stuff.tv
The Zenith Defy Skyline Skeleton White Surfer proves you can never go wrong with white ceramic
After two sell-out collaborations, Zenith and Time+Tide have dropped the final instalment in their surf-inspired trilogy – and it's a sun-bleached stunner. Meet the Defy Skyline Skeleton White Surfer Ceramic, a limited edition of just 100 pieces that swaps moody titanium for something fresher: full white ceramic. Like its 'Night Surfer' predecessors, this is a skeletonised version of Zenith's boldest sports watch, with the same sharp lines and distinctive star-shaped bridges. But this time, it's in a more summery variant. The 41mm case is ultra-light and scratch-resistant, with 100m water resistance and a screw-down crown – so yes, you can take it in the sea. The openworked dial keeps the trilogy's signature gradient effect, but inverts it: deep blue at the top fading to sky blue at the bottom. A glowing five-pointed star – lit with Super-LumiNova – gives a nostalgic nod to the original Night Surfer from 2021. It's also echoed in the movement beneath. Powering the show is the El Primero 3620 SK, a high-frequency automatic calibre that beats at 5Hz and offers 1/10th second accuracy via a central hand driven straight from the escapement. It's got 55 hours of power reserve and an unusual level of decoration for a watch this sporty, including blue bridges and a star-shaped rotor, visible through the sapphire caseback. The integrated bracelet is white ceramic too, but you also get a white rubber strap that swaps in easily, thanks to Zenith's quick-change system. Handy when you're heading from rooftop drinks to beach volleyball. For Time+Tide founder Andrew McUtchen, the white surfer was an irresistible twist on the collab that started it all: 'There's a huge risk in trying for a trilogy when the first two collabs have been so popular, but when we saw the prototype of an 'inverted' Night Surfer, in brushed white ceramic, we just had to make it happen.' It's a confident end to the trilogy – and proof that white doesn't have to mean plain. The Defy Skyline Skeleton White Surfer is bold, breezy and very much limited. And like any good summer romance, it probably won't stick around for long. The Defy Skyline Skeleton White Surfer is available from the 11th of July on Time+Tide's website, priced at US$19,600 / £17,700. Liked this? The new Hublot Classic Fusion Essential Taupe might be my favourite Hublot… ever
