The future of timekeeping? Patek Philippe and more watchmakers are combining artistry and technical skill in unique complications, from jumping hours to ultra-thin wonders
Andersen Genève, Urwerk, Otsuke, SpaceOne and Konstantin Chaykin all bring their creativity to bear on telling the time in a distinctive way
Though watches are broadly leaning towards the understated and subtle, one of the best ways watchmakers can showcase their technical ability and artistic creativity is by taking three left turns to show time in a revolutionary new way.
The Andersen Genève Jumping Hours Black Stone is a case in point, using the “jumping hours” complication that shows the hours in a single window in a rotating dial, and going down to one hand for minutes. The piece is an exercise in simplicity – easy on the eye and bursting with intrigue.
In the sci-fi-esque Urwerk EMC SR-71 Blackbird, traditional dials are given a twist, not only making use of metal from the classic Cold War era reconnaissance plane, but taking inspiration from its flight gauges to show hours, minutes and power reserve on separate faces.
The Trilobe L’Heure Exquise was released at this year’s Watches and Wonders as a limited edition run of 100 pieces, including the starry Secret Edition pictured here. Housed in Grade 5 titanium, the dial uses three rotating discs to tell the time, while the moonphase dial ticks with the seconds.
The retrograde watch does use a hand to tell the time, but it does not fully rotate so much as mechanically snap back at the end of the cycle.
The Otsuka Lotec No 6 and Patek Philippe 5160/500R-001 show this complication in very different aesthetic contexts. The former is almost surgical in its design with brushed metal and needle-esque hands showing the time, no nonsense, no fuss.