illiam Massena, founder of Massena LAB, first met Robin Tallendier and Wilfried Buiron, the co-founders of Atelier Wen in New York in 2023. By then, Atelier Wen had made significant strides in reframing the perception of modern Chinese craft and manufacturing by blending elements of classic Chinese design and traditional craftsmanship with horological savoir-faire and advanced manufacturing.

Later, during a trip to China to visit the Atelier Wen workshops, it was clear that the two co-founders had successfully completed their mission: the promise behind “proudly made in China” had been fully realized. On William’s flight home, a new collaboration took shape, one that would pair Atelier Wen’s design language into dialogue with the technical mastery of Switzerland’s finest dial makers.

The Atelier Wen x Massena LAB Inflection Shuò, a limited edition of only 50 pieces, is split between two dial variants: 10 pieces with White Gold dials in all white gold (reserved for established clients) and 40 pieces with Rose Gold dials in both white gold and rose gold (orders fully open to the public).

The collaboration takes the name ’Shuò,’ from the Chinese character 烁, which can be translated as ’sparkling’, ’glittering’, or ’radiant’, poetically evoking the shimmering, reflective qualities of hand tremblage on its dial. The technique behind this subtle finishing, however, is anything but straightforward.

The dials for both variants are first crafted from solid 18k gold, with a base plate finished with one of the rarest and most demanding decorative crafts in watchmaking: hand tremblage. The technique is executed entirely by hand engraving specialist Coralie Mercier on behalf of GT Cadrans, who pushes a graver across the 18k gold surface while continuously oscillating the dial, slowly transforming its texture into thousands of tiny, irregular facets. A timeconsuming and unforgiving process, a single mistake can ruin an entire dial.

On top of this main dial plate is a radially brushed sector of either white gold or rose gold, depending on the dial variant. Arranged in a California-dial-inspired layout, another design element inspired by the exchange between East and West at the heart of this collaboration, the hour sector combines hand-engraved, custom serif Arabic numerals for hours 10 through 2, with hand-calligraphed Chinese numerals commissioned by Atelier Wen for hours 4 to 8. The outer sector ring is finished with more hand tremblage and framed by a finely engraved huiwen border, a classic Chinese decorative motif named for its resemblance to the Chinese character 回.

Both the engraved, custom, Arabic numerals, and the hand-calligraphed Chinese numerals are blue-filled to match the blued-steel hour, minute, and second hands hovering above the hand-finished dial. At 12 o’clock, the dial is signed “Atelier Wen”, also in blue, while “Massena” is found near 6 o’clock in white gold, subtly marking the collaboration.

In contrast to the inherent warmth of the gold dial: the cold blue hue of a 99.9% tantalum case and its integrated bracelet. Notoriously difficult metal to work, and harder yet to finish, tantalum is prized not just for its inky blue undertones but instead for its density, weight, anti-corrosive properties.

The difficulty of working with tantalum is only heightened by the design language of the Atelier Wen x Massena LAB Inflection Shuò, whose 40mm tantalum case and bracelet embrace an all-curved architecture, which is inspired by Chinese architectural forms and features almost no flat planes whatsoever in its construction.

A concave bezel and ridged midcase lend further depth and dimension to the case, while the bracelet’s curved links play brushed and mirror-polished surfaces against one another, external links finished with strong vertical brushing, middle links mirror-polished, and chamfers polished to a concave finish throughout. The case is water-resistant to 100m and features a screw-down crown in either tantalum (White Gold variant) or rose gold (Rose Gold variant).

The Atelier Wen x Massena LAB Inflection Shuò is powered by a customized caliber GP03300 from Girard-Perregaux, one of Switzerland’s oldest and most storied manufactures of haute horlogerie. The curved, sweeping lines of the bridges take their inspiration from motifs of wind found in historical Chinese paintings, a symbolic contrast between lightness and the immense weight of tantalum itself.

The bridges are ruthenium-plated and finished with dramatic anglage, sharp exterior angles, and laser-etched waved côtes that emanate radially from the movement’s center, complemented by black-polished screws and a similarly wind-inspired rotor, plated in 5N rose gold. Fitted with 27 jewels and beating at 28,800 vibrations per hour, the automatic caliber offers a 48-hour power reserve.

Reflecting on the collaboration, Robin Tallendier of Atelier Wen explained: “When William first came to meet us, and later travelled to our workshops in China, he saw what we have been seeking to demonstrate since the start of Atelier Wen: that China could stand at the highest level of contemporary watchmaking. This timepiece is the culmination of that conviction. Bringing hand-executed tremblage and Chinese calligraphy together with a fully customized Girard-Perregaux movement allows our areas of expertise to engage in a true dialogue.”

William Massena added: “Since founding Massena LAB, we’ve never had the opportunity to work with a Chinese watchmaker. In Atelier Wen, we found a like-minded partner who was just as willing to experiment in our “lab” as we could have hoped. With assistance from GT Cadrans and engraver Coralie Mercier, we’ve married traditional, Swiss dial finishing techniques with classic Chinese design influences from Atelier Wen, all while creating a new interpretation of the California dial. On a personal note, I am especially excited to offer our collectors a Massena LAB watch in tantalum, one of my favorite metals (and one with an integrated bracelet at that), a double-first for Massena LAB.”

The Atelier Wen x Massena LAB Inflection Shuò will be available for order, starting today, August 26, 2026 by submitting an inquiry via the product page on the Atelier Wen and Massena LAB websites. The watch can be viewed in person at Geneva Watch Days 2026 starting Wednesday, September 2 through Saturday, September 5. Interested collectors in the Geneva area may reach out to the Atelier Wen or Massena LAB teams directly to schedule a viewing. Limited edition of only 50 pieces. Price: CHF 33,800 excluding taxes. Deliveries in small batches starting in early 2027.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Case

• Tantalum with mixed concave and convex surfaces.
• Diameter: 40mm. Lug-to-lug: 45mm.
• Thickness: 10.2mm including crystal.
• Double-domed sapphire crystal with five layers of anti-reflective coating.
• Exhibition case back also with sapphire crystal, also with five layers of anti-reflective coating.
• Screw-down crown in tantalum (White Gold variant) or solid rose gold (Rose Gold variant).
• Water-resistance: 100m/10ATM.

Dial

• Solid 18k white gold base plate. White Gold variant includes 14.66g of gold; Rose Gold variant includes 14.59g of gold.
• Radially brushed hour sector in white gold (White Gold variant) or rose gold (Rose Gold variant).
• Hand tremblage (one of the most arduous decorative techniques in horology) and hand-engraved numerals. Dial by GT Cadrans (Lonay, Switzerland) with engraving by Coralie Mercier.
• Typography combining Massena LAB’s custom Arabic numerals and Chinese calligraphy commissioned by Atelier Wen.
• California-dial inspired layout with both blue-filled Arabic numerals and hand-calligraphed Chinese numerals.
• Blued tri-planed, voluminous rhodium-plated “leaf” hands. Frosted mid-plane and high-polished, deeply concave side planes. Hand-bent minute hand.
• Signed both “Atelier Wen”, with Atelier Wen logo as well as “Massena” to mark the collaboration.
• Outer sector decorated with a huiwen pattern, a classic Chinese decorative motif.

Movement

• Self-winding, customized Girard-Perregaux caliber GP03300.
• Curved, sweeping movement architecture intentionally designed to mimic the lines of the case and bracelet while also referencing motifs of wind and water found in historical Chinese paintings.
• Plates and bridges finished in dark grey ruthenium plating with dramatic anglage and sharp exterior angles. Wavy côtes further reference wind motifs. Black-polished screws.
• Curved, custom, wind-inspired winding rotor plated in 5N rose gold.
• 27 jewels.
• 28,800 vph.
• Approximately 48 hours of power reserve.
• Adjusted to 5 positions and to temperature.
• Stop (hacking) seconds function.

Functions

• Hours, minutes, and seconds.

Bracelet

• 99.9% pure tantalum.
• Curved external and middle links, with strong vertical brushing on the external links and mirror-polishing on the middle links.
• Concave mirror-polished chamfers.
• 22mm width (at the case), tapering to 18mm at the clasp.
• Patent-pending, on-the-fly micro-adjustment system, adjustable to 4 positions.
• Telescopic deployant blade.
• Quick-release system.

Price

• CHF 33,800