Gérald Genta and Octavio Garcia: Audemars Piguet Design and the Legacy of a Watchmaking Icon

Now with more than two decades in the Swiss watch industry, it is evident that American-born designer Octavio Garcia has played an important role in the history of Audemars Piguet with his 12 years in the design department. I recently talked with him about this time in his life and his thoughts on altering designs of the iconic Gérald Genta, who created the Royal Oak

© Courtesy of Elizabeth Doerr

Garcia started his journey at OMEGA, where he remained for four years under both the legendary Jean-Claude Biver and Nicolas Hayek Sr., but it was at the age of 35 that Garcia took on the daunting task at Audemars Piguet. “OMEGA was where I learned discipline – how a collection’s DNA tells a story and how important it is to respect its formal language,” he recalls. “Those limits shape your eye; they teach you to evolve, not reinvent.”

When Garcia joined Audemars Piguet in 2003 under then-design head Claude Emmenegger, the Royal Oak Offshore was the star thanks in great part to the work of then head of the U.S. markets François-Henry Bennahmias (who later became global CEO) and Offshore designer Emmanuel Gueit. “I saw that as an opportunity to explore Genta’s work from the inside,” Garcia remembers. “My first big project was integrating the new Caliber 3120 into the Royal Oak – reworking case proportions, bracelet profiles, even the hands and indexes. That was my first real dive into his design logic, even though I hadn’t met him yet.”

That period in watch history was perfectly ripe for the muscular Royal Oak Offshore, which became the era’s unequivocal bestseller in all its facets. Garcia also explains that it was an exciting time to join Audemars Piguet because of the experimental technologies in case materials, including alloys, carbon fiber and ceramics, and monumental movements made with the help of Audemars Piguet Renaud & Papi. The beefy, well thought-out, technical nature of the Royal Oak Offshore helped usher in a transformation of the watch industry that would hold a good 15 years before swinging back over to slimmer, more svelte timepiece types.

Meeting a design hero: Octavio Garcia x Gérald Genta

© Courtesy of Octavio Garcia

“I didn’t officially meet Mr. Genta until 2010, but by then his influence was already deeply present in my work,” said Garcia. “When we finally spoke, I asked him about those very hands and indexes, why he gave them such soft contours against such a sharp, architectural case. He told me he wanted them to feel protective, almost maternal, to counter the brutality of the design. That line has stayed with me ever since.”

Garcia met him at the SIHH 2010 (a global watch fair now called Watches & Wonders). “I walked him through the novelties at the Audemars Piguet booth. That year’s collection was very Royal Oak Offshore – heavy – we were launching the Grand Prix Offshore, bold and technical by design. He was surprised; it clearly wasn’t to his taste. But he listened. He observed everything, asked sharp questions about proportion and surfaces, and then spoke about design with complete clarity. Before leaving, he mentioned working together on something for the 40th anniversary of the Royal Oak. Hearing that from him was surreal,” Garcia remembered.

Later in 2010, Genta came to Le Brassus to discuss that idea in more detail in a quieter, more personal meeting. “We spoke about construction, finishing, and the intent behind certain design choices. He shared his vision for an anniversary Royal Oak – not as a repetition of the original, but as a new statement. He wanted to challenge the geometry itself, to experiment with form and materials in a way that would redefine what the Royal Oak could be. It was audacious but entirely true to him, always pushing forward, never looking back.”

Garcia related that Genta spoke about proportion, balance, and the emotional logic of design as if the ideas were new. “He had this uncanny ability to find geometry in everyday life – to see form and rhythm in objects most of us overlook – and translate that onto paper through his jeweler’s discipline of one-to-one gouache renderings. Every line had intention.”

Garcia’s last meeting with him was in Monaco in 2011. By the time of the Royal Oak’s 40th anniversary later that year, Genta had unfortunately passed on.

Gérald Genta’s and the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Offshore

It’s often been said that Genta was not fond of the Royal Oak Offshore. Garcia agrees with this sentiment. “He mentioned the Offshore when we met – he found it too large, too colorful, maybe too far from the refinement of his original geometry,” he remembered. “I understood where that came from. The Offshore was born in a different era, with different expectations. It wasn’t trying to replace the Royal Oak; it was speaking to a new generation that wanted something more expressive and technical.”

© Courtesy of Emmanuel Gueit

The Royal Oak Offshore was also the work of a then young designer, Emmanuel Gueit, who began working for Audemars Piguet at the age of 20 and who Genta had mentored early on. Just as Genta had challenged traditional watchmaking in his day, Gueit pushed against the codes of the 1990s by practically magnifying the characteristics of Genta’s Royal Oak. “Both took risks, both faced skepticism, and both ended up reshaping how we think about design,” Garcia is certain.

“There’s a kind of continuity there, a dialogue between two generations who dared to test the limits of proportion and purpose,” Garcia explained. “When I took over the design direction at Audemars Piguet, my goal wasn’t to defend or justify the Royal Oak Offshore; it was to make sure it stayed coherent within that lineage. For me, the Royal Oak Offshore was an evolution in attitude, not in essence.

“In a way, Genta’s criticism kept me sharp. It reminded me that design only stays alive when it creates tension – between tradition and innovation, restraint and energy. That tension became part of my process. It’s what pushed me to respect the DNA while still moving forward.”

Octavio Garcia’s reflections on Gérald Genta through the lens of today

© Courtesy of Elizabeth Doerr

“What I remember most about Gérald Genta isn’t a single design or moment, it’s the way he approached ideas,” Garcia said. “Even after everything he had achieved, he spoke with curiosity and conviction, never with distance. That openness left a mark on me. It reminded me that good design doesn’t come from certainty, it comes from questioning.

“He changed the way we think about watches, proving that geometry and emotion could coexist, that proportion could carry feeling. For me, that’s the real legacy: the belief that design can be both disciplined and alive.

“What struck me most was his curiosity. Even after a lifetime of achievements, he was still searching, still questioning. You could see it in his eyes: that constant movement between reflection and invention. There was a generosity to the way he spoke about design; he didn’t hold knowledge like a secret, he shared it freely.

“That’s the image I keep of him – a man still in motion, still creating, still chasing the next idea. It’s how I think he would want to be remembered.”