A frozen moment, shaped in time
Winter 2026 is not a seasonal colorway. It is a landscape. A dial conceived as a surface, not a graphic. A watch designed as an experience of cold, depth, and silence.
Built on the SB04‑E platform, Winter 2026 showcases an extremely complex dial produced by Sartory‑Billard — technically, visually, and emotionally.
This piece captures the stillness of a frozen lake, the tension beneath the ice, and the fragile geometry of snowflakes suspended in time.
The dial, ice, depth and structure
Designed by Armand Billard, the Winter 2026 dial is the result of a long experimental process combining digital construction and traditional dial‑making techniques.
At its core lies a custom graphic model built from individual snowflake structures. This digital relief was not decorative: it was engineered to become a physical surface.
The dial is first embossed using a bespoke 3D‑constructed mold, transferring the snowflake geometry directly into the metal. This relief becomes the foundation for the entire visual depth of the watch.
On this sculpted surface, a 3D painting process is applied, followed by a smoked gradient shifting from ice blue at the periphery to a soft white center. The transition is progressive, organic, and intentionally imperfect — like light diffusing through frozen water.
A thick layer of lacquer is then applied, creating a visual effect reminiscent of a frozen lake: smooth on the surface, yet revealing depth and texture beneath. Light does not simply reflect — it sinks, spreads, and returns.
Finally, the Roman numerals are applied by tampography using Super‑LumiNova® BGW9, ensuring legibility in low light while preserving the dial’s calm, monochrome palette.
This is not a printed dial. It is a constructed surface.
Hands and readability
The SB04‑E handset has been carefully selected for Winter 2026 to maintain clarity without disturbing the dial’s visual balance.
Diamond‑cut hands, filled with BGW9 Super‑LumiNova®, float above the frozen surface, catching light sharply against the soft diffusion of the dial below.
Legibility remains immediate — even as the dial invites contemplation.
About design
Winter 2026 is housed in the SB04‑E case, a design known for its tension between classical proportions and contemporary execution.
- Diameter: 39.5 mm
- Thickness: balanced for everyday wear
- Finishing: mirror‑polished surfaces contrasted with precise geometry
The polished case acts as a frame, amplifying the dial’s luminosity and reinforcing the sensation of depth.
Water‑resistance is rated at 100 meters, making Winter 2026 as functional as it is poetic.
A Winter interpretation of time
Winter 2026 is not about cold. It is about stillness.
About time slowing beneath a frozen surface. About structure hidden under apparent calm.
Each dial is a landscape. Each watch a frozen moment — shaped in time.
Movement
The watch is powered by a Swiss mechanical movement, regulated and assembled to Sartory‑Billard standards.
Reliable, proven, and discreet, the movement serves the design rather than competing with it — allowing the dial to remain the true focal point of the watch.
