The astounding creativity within time displays

The Watch Edit: Masters of Time by DFS 

Our version of timekeeping in a contemporary sense may be nothing short of bizarre, considering its origins and various iterations in the centuries since its discovery. For the most part, it’s often straightforward, whether we are looking at classic three-hand dials or flashy digital displays. Perhaps it is merely proof of how rushed we are nowadays and how straight to the point we feel we need to be. However, there are a few innovative watchmakers in this modern era who choose to go off-piste with their whimsical, and at times, romantic creations, challenging the way we tell time. Considering the vast array available within haute horlogerie, with its endless designs and ideas, it takes a truly standout piece to turn the heads of the most jaded watch aficionado these days.

A John Shelton clock made in the 1760s with an unusual display for sidereal time

We see experimenting in full force when it comes to cases, shapes, sizes, materials and colors; you would be hard pressed not to be able to find a style of watch for each and every personality. However, for some watchmakers, it simply isn’t enough, and they redefine the act of timekeeping through unorthodox displays and ingenious mechanisms.

HYT are a clear front runner when it comes to this movement towards novel timekeeping methods, which comes with its own set of challenges. Fluid timekeeping is a concept still puzzling to many and certainly does not offer an eminently precise time display, which may be an immediate deterrent for some but does pique the interest of curious cats. The Supernova Blue Moon Runner boasts a 3D display to showcase lunar phases, as well as satellite day and month indications, while its signature fluidic timekeeping makes its way around the dial to inform us of the hours.

An astronomical clock from the 1920s showing a 15,000-year perpetual calendar is certainly a different approach to displaying time

A more artful approach comes in the form of Reservoir’s Blake and Mortimer “By Jove!” watch. The comic book heroes featured originally in Hergé’s Tin Tin come to life by way of jumping hour time display in a large window at 6 o’clock and shows Blake indicating the minutes with his arm sweeping the perimeter of the dial. On the other hand, it is the captivating display of a triple axis tourbillon that takes center stage on Vianney Halter’s Deep Space Resonance, spinning and beating like a heartbeat. Time is shown at opposite ends of the dial; hours and quarter hours are shown in an aperture at the top, while minutes rely on a Vernier caliper style, a revolving, marked inner ring slides up against a static fifteen-minute reference.

Even the age-old sundial can be interpreted in creative ways

More poetic complications provide further abstract time telling, such as the Lady Arpels Heures Florale by Van Cleef & Arpels that requires the wearer to count the number of opened flowers in order to tell the time, inspired by the natural cycle of opening and closing in the wild. Complete efficiency it certainly does not possess, but merely another example of the maison’s jovial nature and propensity for whimsy. Similarly, the Compliquée Peacock Arte by Fabergé requires a little extra attention when deciphering the time; the outer mother-of-pearl disc rotates to represent the hour at 3 o’clock, while the stunning fan of the bird’s tail feathers takes up most of the display and expands over the course of the hour to display minutes. Yet another example of charming, wearable art for the wrist and how time can be told in novel ways.

Perhaps modern timepieces will evolve beyond purely physical displays

Quirky timekeeping is simply one more example of how the world of watchmaking continues to innovate and astonish its audience on a regular basis.