The short documentary film ‘Time Piece’ features two of the world’s best living watchmakers, Philippe Dufour and Vianney Halter. It provides insight into what makes the watches by these masters so special.
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.
Established brands with centuries of tradition tend to basically recreate the past in the, “if-it-ain’t-broke-don’t-fix-or-change-it-(much)” approach to watchmaking. But in not feeling constrained by tradition, Urwerk is one of the young brands consistently presenting us with a steady supply of exciting new models like 2014’s UR-105M. Take a look at it here!
The ‘Superbia Humanitatis’ Louis-Elysée Piguet/Franck Muller/Paul Gerber super complication is one of the most legendary watches of our time. And what a story! And here it is in its entirety: from 1892 when Piguet made the movement through 1992 when Franck Muller altered it, all the way through the present day when Paul Gerber altered it three more times to make it the most complicated wristwatch in the world.
Both Martin and Ian named the Giberg Niura Flying Tourbillon as their “best of show” in the Quill & Pad Baselworld 2018 round table. So why did two guys who usually don’t cast as much as a second glance at women’s watches come to decide that an overtly diamond-set timepiece was the best thing they saw at Baselworld? You’ll have to see it to find out. And it’s worth seeing!
The Vault V1 is a rather unique timepiece, and due to a curious feature it becomes even more unique after the wearer adjusts the time even once. It’s worth checking out the first watch by this new independent brand!
I had the good fortune to visit Rome on Thursday for the opening of ‘Watchmakers: The Masters of Art Horology’ at the Maxxi Gallery in Rome, and if you have a few minutes I’d like to share the evening with you and let you know where you might be able to see the exhibition in the near future.
Many watches hold special significance for their owners. The Jean Daniel Nicolas Two-Minute Tourbillon by Daniel Roth Ian chronicles here didn’t just change someone’s life, it changed his own life. Read on to learn how.
This year, our small Northern Californian group had a bumper crop of meetings with independent watchmakers; we started during our time in Geneva with Akrivia, and then ventured out to the Bernese Oberland for a visit with Beat Haldimann before circling back to the De Bethune manufacture and finally a visit to that shrine of watchmaking: the atelier of Philippe Dufour.
If you’re looking for a watch that goes out of the way to be unusual or even a watch made with the love and attention of a single gifted watchmaker, you’d be hard pressed to find a better place to look than among the independent watchmakers. Here are five recently released timepieces by independent watchmakers that might just tickle your fancy.