Rolex and the Arts
Rolex has a rich history of supporting excellence in art. In addition to recognizing individuals such as German tenor Jonas Kaufmann for their artistic successes, they also support several cultural institutions worldwide such as the Royal Opera House in London and the Metropolitan Opera in New York City. In addition, they have a program called the Mentor and Protege Arts Initiative that pairs seasoned artists in several disciplines with proteges to help cultivate and develop artistic talent.
Academy Award Winner and Rolex Mentor Alejandro González Iñárritu
Every Rolex Tells a Story: James Cameron
 |
| Academy Award Winner and Rolex Mentor Alejandro González Iñárritu |
Rolex's Mentor and Protégé Arts Initiative has coupled Oscar-winning directors with protégés in the film industry since 2004, when the program began to include film as a discipline. Alejandro González Iñárritu, the first Mexican director to be nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director, participated in the 2014-2015 initiative. more
Every Rolex Tells a Story: James Cameron
 |
| Academy Award Winning Director James Cameron (photo: Rolex) |
While the world knows James Cameron as the Oscar winning director of blockbusters like Titanic and Avatar, the filmmaker and Rolex Testimonee also has a passion for exploration that is expressed in the watchmaker's latest addition to their Every Rolex Tells a Story series. more
 |
| 88th Academy Awards Greenroom |
 |
| Codex: Ashes and Snow by Gregory Colbert (photo: Gregory Colbert Facebook) |
Gregory Colbert is a Canadian artist whose photographic, filmic and literary work focuses on moments of contact between man and the animal kingdom. In 2002, he presented a show at the Venice Arsenal entitled Ashes and Snow. more
 |
| Mentors for Cycle 8 of Rolex Mentor and Protege Arts Initiative (photo: Rolex) |
 |
| Director Alfonso Cuarón and Protégé Chaitanya Tamhane (photo: Rolex/©Rolex/Audoin Desforges) |
 |
| Dame Kiri Te Kanawa (photo: Rolex/Ambroise Tézenas) |
New Zealand sporano Kiri Te Kanawa became the first Rolex Arts Testimonee in 1976. She was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 1982 for her services to opera just a year after singing for Prince Charles and Lady Diana Spencer at their wedding. more
 |
| The Metropolitan Opera, New York City (photo: Rolex/Ambroise Tézenas) |
The largest classical music organization in North America, The Metropolitan Opera saw its first season in 1883. Rolex has been the official timepiece of The Metropolitan Opera since August of 2011. more
 |
| German Tenor Jonas Kaufmann (photo: Rolex/Benoît Peverelli) |
 |
| The Royal Opera House in London (photo: Rolex/Ambroise Tézenas) |
 |
| Rolex Testimonee Plácido Domingo (photo: Rolex/ Mario Testino) |
 |
| Teatro Alla Scala, Milan (photo: Rolex/Ambroise Tézenas) |
 |
| Rolex Arts Testimonee Cecilia Bartoli (photo: ©Rolex/Emmanuel Fradin) |
Italian Mezzo-Soprano Cecilia Bartoli is a world renowned mezzo-soprano opera singer and recitalist. Educated in song by her parents, both singers, she made her opera debut in 1987 in Verona, Italy at the age of 21. more
 |
| Salzburg, Austria during the 2014 Salzburg Festival (photo: Rolex/Ambroise Tezenas) |
The Salzburg Festival is a celebration of performing arts and music that takes place in Salzburg, Austria every summer. The first festival took place in 1920 with a performance of Hugo von Hofmannsthal's Jedermann in front of the Salzburg Cathedral. more
In addition to his job designing Japan's National Stadium for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, Kengo Kuma has also been hired to design the new Rolex Sales and Service center in Dallas, Texas. The Dallas tower features an environmentally sophisticated design that incorporates natural light and historic Japanese architecture. more
 |
| Japanese Architect Kengo Kuma's design for Rolex's Dallas Sales & Service Center (design: Kengo Kuma) |
 |
| Rolex Testimonee Bryn Terfel (photo: Fadil Berisha) |
 |
| Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra New Years Concert (photo: Jun Keller) |
One of the worlds foremost institutions of classical music, Rolex has been the exclusive partner of the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra since 2008 and exclusive sponsor of their New Years Concert since 2009. more
 |
| Mexican Tenor Rolando Villazón (photo: Monika Rittershaus) |
A Rolex Arts Testimonee since 2005, Mexican tenor Rolando Villazón has been dazzling audiences with his beautiful voice and masterful stage presence when he appeared on the international opera scene in 1999. more
The daughter of a dancer and a percussionist, Beijing-born concert pianist Yuja Wang became a Rolex Arts Testimonee in 2009. The young piano prodigy began playing at the age of six and by the time she was eleven, she was already playing international music festivals. more
 |
| Rolex Testimonee Yuja Wang (photo: Rolex/Hugo Glendinning) |
 |
| Conductor Gustavo Dudamel (photo: Rolex/Monika Rittershaus) |
A Rolex Arts Testimonee since 2008, Venezuelan conductor Gustavo Dudamel began his career young, making his conducting debut at age 12. He has remained busy since then, serving as musical director for several orchestras before turning thirty years old. more
Chinese-American cellist Yo-Yo Ma is one of the most accomplished classical musicians of our time, releasing over 100 albums and winning 18 Grammy Awards. He was born in Paris, raised in New York, studied at Juilliard and graduated from Harvard all by 1976. more
 |
| Rolex Arts Testimonee Yo-Yo Ma (photo: Rolex/Marco Grob) |
