3 December 2025

4:15 PM – 5:50 PM

Grand Kurssal

Philippe Lebru

Since 1993, the insatiable Besançon-based designer Philippe Lebru has been counting and recounting time. It is a crazy passion that he interprets in his own way, scrupulously respecting the method in order to better disrupt the codes and reinvent the art of watchmaking. In the land of Pasteur, Proudhon, Courbet, Victor Hugo, Fourier, and others, utopia is second nature, and imagination often takes over, challenging culture, science, and technology in order to better understand them, and sometimes even tame them. This unique approach is characteristic of Philippe Lebru. This is evidenced by his clocks and watches, which reveal all the magic and complexity of the mechanism in a design that combines simplicity and spectacle. His innovations in both technology and design have been recognized many times: in 2005, the Concours Lépine awarded him the Grand Prix in all categories and the Salon de l’Invention de Genève awarded him the Gold Medal in watchmaking. With his mind always alert, he never stops designing, imagining and dreaming ever further. Philippe Lebru designs his watches and clocks himself. Depending on the collection, the materials used are pushed to their limits and enhanced by the craftsmanship. Nothing stops him, and monumental clocks are installed outdoors. This is how clocks with surprising lines and unique mechanical watches are created. Sobriety dominates in every detail…

In this age of luxury, has time itself reached its limits?

This round table discussion on luxury offers an immersion into the heart of Franche-Comté, a region whose identity has been profoundly shaped by the mastery of time. Here, the measurement of time is not just a tool: it becomes matter, thought, culture, and a driving force for transformation. Anchored in a centuries-old watchmaking heritage, this region has established itself as the capital of time, an incubator for microtechniques and technological expertise capable of creating the infinitely small. Limits, landmarks, and time markers become points of reference for understanding the evolution of a constantly changing biotope in Franche-Comté and Besançon. Around the table, a geographer, a high-frequency entrepreneur, the inventor of silicon micromotors and The Time Changer watch, designers, and luxury artisans will share their perception of time and how it is linked to the world of watchmaking. Together, they will offer a cross-disciplinary reading of the roots, ruptures, and innovations that today fuel technical luxury excellence and the vision of tomorrow.