With IWC, Vogue Scandinavia ventured north to Svalbard, the remote Arctic archipelago, to explore the mysteries of the skies, the house’s watchmaking excellence, and how it connects to space and Le Petit Prince – the inspiration behind IWC’s latest campaign, starring Count Nikolai of Monpezat
Visiting Svalbard is an experience that lives up to every sense of the word ‘breathtaking’. Punctuated by towering, snow-blanketed mountains and sprawling, icy stretches that disappear into the windswept sea, the Arctic archipelago – the world’s northernmost inhabited destination, nestled between mainland Norway and the North Pole – feels like stepping onto a far-flung planet.
It’s apt, considering that in many ways, Svalbard is our gateway to the cosmos, a hub for cutting-edge space exploration, from one of the world’s most important satellite stations housed on the islands to its Northern Lights observatories that embody our endless fascination with the sky.
It was fitting, then, that Swiss luxury watchmaker IWC Schaffhausen – which boasts a storied aviation heritage and nurtures a cherished connection to the beloved celestial tale Le Petit Prince, and the legacy of its author and trailblazing pilot Antoine de Saint-Exupéry – ventured north to the otherworldly surroundings of Svalbard with a group of journalists and friends of the house.
Photo: Stephanie Sikkes
Vogue Scandinavia's editor in chief, Martina Bonnier was among the lucky ones to attend the trip. Photo: Stephanie Sikkes
Photo: Ida Bjorvik
Over three days, we were immersed in the archipelago's extraordinary wonders, including gazing at the Northern Lights and learning the science behind them, dining at Huset, the world’s northernmost fine-dining restaurant, and visiting the Global Seed Vault. This innovative, underground facility holds duplicates of crop seeds from around the world, embracing the future while committing to preserve what we have – ideas central to the IWC universe, too.
IWC’s rich heritage and expertise as the engineers of fine watchmaking were threaded through every chapter of exploration, including its boundless curiosity and ambition to push the boundaries of horology, and its pioneering mastery of perpetual calendar complications, crafting watches that don’t just tell the time, but automatically track the intricate cycles of our calendar.
Northern Lights painted the sky in delicate shades of green and blue. Photo: Stephanie Sikkes
Norwegian-American actor and former Vogue Scandinavia digital cover star Kristine Froseth was also among the guests. Photo: Stephanie Sikkes
IWC watches on display on Svalbard. Photo: Stephanie Sikkes
Naturally, a selection of visionary IWC timepieces ventured north with us, bringing the house’s world of haute horology to life through precision and craftsmanship. Take, for instance, the Portugieser Perpetual Calendar Tourbillon, its rare, vibrant purple hues mirroring the Northern Lights. Meanwhile, the Pilot’s Watch Venturer Vertical Drive showcases IWC’s aviation heritage, stretching back 90 years. “Built from the ground up, this is a watch with a look and feel you’ve never seen before,” explains IWC’s Chief Marketing Officer, Franziska Gsell, as we marvel at the timepieces. “We looked at modern space flight, astronauts and the instruments they use, and what would be needed for a watch to be spaceflight-certified.”
Count Nikolai of Monpezat stars as Le Petit Prince in IWC's latest campaign, shot on Svalbard. Photo: Stephanie Sikkes
Photo: Stephanie Sikkes
Photo: Stephanie Sikkes
Few literary masterpieces capture curiosity and adventure quite like Le Petit Prince, whose titular character travels between galaxies, exchanging poignant thoughts about love, friendship, and human nature with extraterrestrial and Earth-bound inhabitants. Sharing Saint-Exupéry's passion for exploration, imagination, and discovery, IWC has collaborated with the Saint-Exupéry Foundation for more than 20 years, its Le Petit Prince-inspired timepieces bridging mechanical excellence with a touch of fantasy.
“Saint-Exupéry was a pioneer, and he was a poet. He was writing poetry even before he was flying, at a very young age,” muses Gsell. “He saw our planet differently and wrote Le Petit Prince, which is still today one of the most-known stories in the world. We still tell it to our children, it’s translated into more than 600 languages. And it’s a story you really see with your heart, I think is super beautiful.”
Photo: Stephanie Sikkes
Photo: Stephanie Sikkes
Photo: Stephanie Sikkes
For its latest campaign, IWC enlisted Le Petit Prince of our time: Count Nikolai of Monpezat. Shot in the majestic, awe-inspiring landscapes of Svalbard, it’s as though the Danish royal was captured on grounds light-years away from Earth. Wearing the Big Pilot’s Watch Perpetual Calendar ProSet Le Petit Prince, crafted from stainless steel and featuring the signature midnight-blue dial with a sunray finish, the watch carries an ingenious perpetual calendar complication that can be adjusted both forward and backwards in time.
And while time is an elusive thing – taking on a whole new dimension in space – what is certain, as Gsell puts it, is that our time on Svalbard was “a trip you will never forget.”