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Crazy Like A Watch
As the mechanical watch sheds the chains of necessity, it throws open its arms and embraces gung-ho feats of engineering finesse and artistic flair. Here are the 2007 contenders for gumption
The word 'crazy' gets bandied about the big watch shows in Switzerland like a Prada bag at a convention of socialites on the lam. The cooing is unabashed and desire is thick upon the tongues of all. More often than not, if something is good, the word 'crazy' gets into it. At the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH), the word was going around that Girard-Perregaux had a 'crazy' piece. It turns out to be their slot machine watch, otherwise known as the Vintage 1945 Jackpot Tourbillon. Why are the experts up in arms and does it have anything to do with the mischievous glint in Gino Macaluso's eye?
Truth be told, 'crazy' is a loaded word and usually indicates something utterly unbelievable or inconceivable, when it comes to watchmaking or watches in general. It's the kind of word that would be heard in the very rafters of BaselWorld and SIHH if someone ever made a working, industrialized mechanical movement that could rival quartz in terms of accuracy. On the other hand, it can be subtly derogatory because one is never certain what it means when something is 'crazy'. Let's return to Girard-Perregaux's offering for an example.
Based on the original turn of the century slot machine, the Liberty Bell, the Jackpot Tourbillon has all the traditional elements watch enthusiasts and marketers alike love. Marrying something from history with something from the brand's own history is par for the course. Then again, in the business of luxury, par for the course is not acceptable. The moment you aren't posting seven-under-par scores on the leader board you're in trouble. To use another sports analogy, you have to be hitting it out of the park regularly or your strength as a hitter will be questioned.
Back to the Jackpot, it is certainly no mistake that the company responsible is Girard-Perregaux. Famously and publicly eschewing trends and fashion, the brand charts its own course according to its own whims. An admirable stance for a high luxury maison to be sure but it does mean that items such as the Jackpot, flying in the face of conventional wisdom and the trend towards 'useful' complications, are inevitable. How one feels about this will shape how one feels about the 'crazy' watch. We say that there are few, if any, watches at this year's shows that are as enjoyable as the Jackpot and we stand by it (price notwithstanding of course).
Big and Bold
Another contender for 'crazy' this year is Concord's massive C1, itself a radical departure from the celebrated Delirium of the 1970s. A brand new team at the brand (part of the Movado Group's efforts to reinvigorate the brand) have decided to present the C1 as the new face of Concord, to go with the brand's new prices (covered elsewhere in the magazine) and 100th anniversary. At 16.7mm thick and 44mm in diameter, the watch boasts a 42-part case of wholly contemporary materials that does not so much hug the wrist as crown it. Even the crown features an interplay of three different materials: rubber, composite and steel. The point, according to Concord, was to create an incredibly tough watch that can withstand the rigors of modern life.
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