Is it possible to make a watch providing a novel and entertaining display of time that is wearable in a variety of settings and will be respected years from now? GaryG believes that he owns such a piece: the Upside Down made by independent watchmaker Ludovic Ballouard.
This is the story of a daily-wear watch: the Tsunami by Japanese independent watchmaker Hajime Asaoka. It’s not a “beater” as it’s too beautifully made for that description, and some folks justifiably take offense at characterizing a five-figure expenditure in those terms. But it is a watch that GaryG suspects that he will be wearing a lot and in a variety of settings.
In GaryG’s view, every successful independent watchmaker has elements of a “house style” that may attract some buyers and put off others, but nonetheless sets him or her apart. And, at the highest level, this style goes beyond “branding” to become an expression of the personality and artistic vision of the creator. In the picturesque Swiss town of Thun, Beat Haldimann and his small team distinguish themselves by focusing on technical virtuosity of the highest order, as typified by the Haldimann H1 Flying Central Tourbillon.
Given GaryG’s musings on these pages about the relative roles of rarity and complication in driving the value of a watch, he thinks it appropriate to dedicate this “Behind the Lens” entry to a piece that is both complicated and limited in production: Patek Philippe’s Reference 5950A. What’s so special about this watch? Well, first of all it’s a split-seconds chronograph. What else?
There’s a big overlap between the populations of watch and car enthusiasts, so it should come as no surprise that some of GaryG’s watch (and car) buddies leapt at the chance to attend the annual Singer Reimagined Monterey event this year and then took advantage of being in the area to sample other events over the weekend as well.
For a watch fanatic, and especially for lovers of independent watch brands, meeting the makers of the watches that we admire is a dream come true. With the Grönefeld brothers, it’s that pleasure multiplied by two. And then there’s the sensational One Hertz.
This is the story of the final watch – or, truthfully, pair of watches – that GaryG happened upon at a Sotheby’s auction in late 2017 and felt that he just had to have: two 1970s prototype pieces made by Jaeger-LeCoultre.
Anyone who visits online watch forums with any frequency very likely comes across at least a few heated discussions of “finishing,” a topic that seems to fascinate, and divide, enthusiasts. What is it and why are opinions divided?
When someone says “I’m no prude,” it is pretty easy to imagine what typically comes next: a prudish commentary on some aspect of modern society or youth culture. I like sex. There we go! To the point and leaves no doubt as to intent, I’d say. That said, I typically try to keep my interests in sex and watches somewhat distinct. But does the watch industry at large?
In 2006 GaryG spotted two objects of desire at a California dealer: Vianney Halter’s dramatic Antiqua and Contemporaine timepieces. They were out of his reach, but in 2007 he found a Contemporaine in white gold offered at a price that was about one-third its original retail value on eBay. What could possibly go wrong?