Maison De Greef Magazine — Issue #1

Without your watch, you feel…? 
That never happens! My watch is indispensible, I never forget it, I even sleep with it!

What model do you wear? 
I have several. During the week I wear an AppleWatch, which is very practical because I’m always connected. The rest of the time I alternate between a Panerai, a Rolex, an Offshore Limited that my wife gave me as a present when I was named Chef of the Year by Gault&Millau in 2007, and a Jaeger-Lecoultre Master with different time zones. In theory I wear that during the holidays, but my son has pinched it and he won’t give it back.

Your favourite time? 
I like the time during service, when I do my work, but also the time after, when I can relax. I also like mealtimes, which I always spend with my family, between 11.10 a.m. and 6.30 p.m., depending on what everybody is doing and on my work. And I like mornings, when I get up. I love going to work. Actually, I’ve never been happier than now.

Time for yourself?
I’m always on the move, it’s in my nature, but at the weekend, I allow myself one and a half hours to read, listen to music or have a drink with a friend. And I have a coach with whom I do cross training and exercise biking. During the week, I try to have a half an hour nap every day. I try, you know...

Comme Chez Soi**, 23 place Rouppe, 1000 Brussels, www.commechezsoi.be 

In 1953, avant-garde architect Jacques Dupuis was given the task of renovating the premises. He took the brave decision to combine the two houses behind a single façade in black and white cement. 

The house is now a listed building, a unique example of modernist architecture in the heart of old Brussels. Now, the interior of nos. 26 and 28 has been completely overhauled, and no. 24, where it all began, has been integrated into the whole. 

In order to achieve these transformations, the Wittmann brothers (now assisted by Brice, the son of Jacques) had to meet a double challenge: they had to enlarge the shop for the clients, but still respect the numerous listed elements in the 1950s interior, which had also been designed by Jacques Dupuis. 

By now, it has become obvious that they have not only achieved their goal, but that the new interior highlights some of the most striking aspects of the original decor: the large counter and the showcases in rosewood, the golden patina of the two safes, the oak wainscoting, leading the eye to the heightened ceiling, the spectacular Venetian chandelier with its beautiful bluish colour, the balustrade of the mezzanine… all elements regular clients had never even noticed before. 

The desks of the sales team, that used to be visible but separated from the clients by the counter, have been replaced by multi-functional worktables, opening up the entire ground floor for visitors. This optimal use of space is further enhanced by new furniture, created by an Italian design company, a splendid showcase with asymmetric openings being the greatest eye catcher.

At the same time, Maison De Greef has completely restored the old house next to it, which is now linked to the shop. This houses a special Patek Philippe space, with a 16^th century wooden staircase in the centre that has been restored to the highest standard. These stairs lead to the VIP room on the first floor with its spectacular contemporary library full of reference books about the last Geneva watchmakers that is still a family business. 

For this second series, Jaeger-LeCoultre and De Greef are introducing a steel watch in a 33-piece edition, which refers to the origin of the Manufacture Jaeger-LeCoultre in 1833. The Reverso Classic Large (Q3828420), displaying the hours and minutes, is equipped with the in-house Jaeger-LeCoultre Calibre 822/2. The dial has a subtle change compared to the original model as the numerals are in blue. The blue color is in line with the colors of the painting on the other side of the case-back. On the case-back the painting The Sky Bird can be found. The work depicts the silhouette of a bird resembling a dove with its body filled with clouds.. The original canvas was painted in 1966.

This edition of the tribute to René Magritte is the second series in a total of three series, in which the great work of this Belgian surrealistic painter will be honoured, each with its own unique characteristics. To create these series three essential elements were to be combined: craftsmanship, art and heritage. All three are admirably embodied in the tributes to Magritte, for which the Jaeger-LeCoultre specialists have again created an exquisite piece of art on the case-back of the Reverso watch. 

In 2016 the first series of these special editions was presented, which was adorned with Magritte’s The Treachery of Images on the case-back of the Reverso. These unique homages to René Magritte are realised in close collaboration with Charly Herscovici and the Magritte Foundation*. The second series of pieces can be admired exclusively at Maison De Greef, while the third series will be introduced in due time. 

The original painting shows a bird crossing the dark night. The iconography of the bird in the night first appears in Magritte’s work around 1940 after which he didn’t use it for years. One year before he died, he painted this canvas and decided to re-use the bird. We will not see any symbols of freedom or peace in the work of Magritte, as he has a big aversion of those kind of interpretations. However what we should see is something else, in the middle of the poetic and mystical world, of which only Magritte has the key. 

For Magritte, the recreation of the day and night in the same image, shows the power to surprise the spectator. To have both day and night in the same painting, puts the spectator in a difficult spot, as it disturbs the spectator in the usual way of thinking. This forces him/her to look at the world in a different way, inviting us in the world of poetry and the mysteries. That’s one of the key messages which Magritte puts in every painting, and especially in The Sky Bird.

Paul Wittmann was an engineer with a great passion for mechanics, but he was also an art collector, and he was entranced by this new philosophy that was very similar to his own idea. Therefore, he contacted the manufacturers in Geneva in 1981. According to Jacques Wittmann, they got on like a house on fire from the start.

And so, in 1981, Maison De Greef became the first distributor of Patek Philippe in Belgium. This collaboration took a decisive turn at the end of the decade, when the company celebrated its 150^th birthday with the introduction of the now legendary Calibre 89: a pocket watch with 33 mechanical functions, the development and manufacture of which had taken nine years.

When they took over from their father in the beginning of the 1990s, Arnaud and Jacques Wittmann took a leaf out of the book of Patek Philippe and rethought the positioning of Maison De Greef: from then on they would only concentrate on the most luxurious of goods. Brands that were a commercial success but were not really innovative were discontinued. Thanks to a growing interest from national and international clients, they could keep up with the technical evolution of Patek Philippe and sell ever more interesting pieces.