IN FOCUS

from Oracle Time - June Futurism Issue - Issue 73

by Oracle Time Magazine

UNSUNG HERO

AN INSIGHT INTO THREE FASCINATING BRANDS

Edited By

SAM KESSLER

Zannetti, Baltic and Stewart Dawson

ZANNETTI

When Italian artisanry and fine watchmaking collide, thoughts instantly turn to the horological cradle of Florence, the beautiful city previously home to the likes of Panerai and Anonimo. But that’s certainly not the only region of Italy to house a watchmaker or two worth a serious collector’s time, particularly if your wristwear tastes venture into more artistic territory.

Situated in workshops in the heart of Rome, Zannetti’s approach to watchmaking is a different one than most, and one that has been overseen by three generations of the family.

Originally established by master goldsmith Carmine Zannetti, the brand was originally an exercise in technical excellence and intricate watchmaking, the sort a specialist in precious metal would design. From there it passed to the hands of Mario Zannetti, a fine arts professor and artist in his own right, who introduced a more artistic, geometric style to the creations of his father.

Now, with Ricardo Zannetti, grandson of Carmine, at the helm, the eponymous watch brand is broadening their scope, using their fine balance of artistry and fine watchmaking as a launchpad to bring Italian creativity to the wider world.

And creative is right. While most brands use artistry as a catchall term for hand crafts and artisan outlooks, Zannetti take it a touch more literally. Even from the genesis of an idea, each of their watches is sketched and designed by hand, a prelude to the inevitable artistic bent of the dials: engraving, micropainting and exquisite stone setting are all par for the course in Zannetti’s studios.

Perhaps the most over the top of all of them is the art of Champlevè, a relatively new string to the brand’s bow but one of the most traditionally ornate forms of fine finishing in watchmaking. The technique consists of creating an outline from gold wire then filling it with different colours of enamel. The result is a kind of enamel micromosaic that has incredible depth – fitting for the Carp depicted on Zannetti’s Gladiatore model.

The Carp though is as much a suggestion as a readily available watch. Due to the hand-finished nature of Zannetti timepieces, personalisation is a huge part of what the brand does. If you have something specific you’d like rendered in Champlevè, micropainting or otherwise, then it’s well within their remit.

Of course, all this talk of artistic techniques is fine, but if the watches underneath aren’t up to scratch then why would you wear it? Why wouldn’t you just go for a piece of jewellery instead?

It’s a fine balance and the reason Zannetti rely on Swiss movements to equip their watches. The

Each Zannetti watch is sketched and designed by hand to create a piece that straddles artistry and fine watchmaking

brand’s skills lie in handcrafts rather than the performance oriented, technical requirements of a calibre. And when you can get a movement as solidly made as an ETA, it makes sense to let the Swiss do what they do best – at least in most cases.

Outside of the movement, many of Zannetti’s timepieces do have impressive specs sheets. The Sucba for example, can survive depths of 550m, making it a serious piece of diving equipment, despite using finishing techniques nobody in their right mind would call ‘utilitarian’. The Repeater leverages one of the highest of high complications there is, making it a work of art both inside and out.

The bottom line however is this: Zannetti is not a watchmaker for lovers of stripped back tool watches or retro charm. Instead, they’re for the kind of collectors that dream of nothing more than wearing a piece of art on the wrist. If there’s any more definitive ‘art watch’ out there, we’ve yet to find it.

Find out more at zannetti.com

BALTIC

The shores of the Baltic Sea are some of the most culturally diverse around, bridging the gap between Scandinavia, eastern Europe and Russia. Something that French watchmaking brand Baltic capture with their range of timepieces that combine elements from across the globe in sleek, vintage designs.

The name Baltic is also a reference to the brand founder’s father, who grew up on the northern coast of Poland where he began a watch collection, which he documented with immaculate notes. When he passed away the notes were inherited by Etienne Malec who became captivated by the records of a father he barely knew. After 15 years, Etienne took the plunge and decided to create his own watch brand inspired by the stories and watches in his father’s collection.

Out of this dedication and passion came the first Baltic timepiece, which has now expanded into a whole range of vintage divers and tool watches. In recent years, it’s the Aquascaphe that’s been leading the charge, an accessible diver with a satisfying bezel and iconic 1960s to 70s skindiver aesthetic.

All Baltic watches are available only through direct-to-consumer sales removing some of the traditional industry and retail costs and allowing the savings to be passed on to their customers. Instead, they are highly active on social media with a thriving community on Facebook and Instagram – they welcome you to join the conversation and ask any questions you might have.

Another part of their ethos is transparency, being open about the parts they use in their timepieces and where they are sourced. As I mentioned earlier, Baltic timepieces are truly global in their production, with cases and movements from Hong Kong, straps from France and additional accessories from Italy. Once each aspect has been manufactured, they are then sent to the Baltic atelier in France for assembly and adjustment.

A timepiece that encapsulates all the ideals of Baltic is the Aquascaphe GMT. It has a stainless steel case with a 39mm diameter that compliments the black, glossy dial. The large, lume-filled, circular indices follow the vintage design principles of classic divers. The look is completed by a date window at the six o’clock position, that felt like it was missing on previous Aquascaphes, mirrored at 12 o’clock by… the number 12.

The standout feature, however, is the combination of the bi-colour day/night bezel ring, which is available in combinations of blue with orange, green and grey. The secondary colour is then adopted by the GMT hand and the Aquascaphe inscription, providing a welcome flash of colour on the otherwise plain dial.

Housed inside is the Swiss Soprod C125 movement, a departure (and improvement) from Baltic’s previous Miyota calibres. It has a 42-hour power reserve, which is solid for its price range of approximately £800. And, of course, it has a diving watch regulation 100m water resistance.

The Aquascaphe GMT is accessible, stylish and designed to give the wearer the best value for money and wearing experience. Then again, the same thing can be said about almost any Baltic timepiece – and that’s their strength.

Find out more at baltic-watches.com

The Aquascaphe GMT (above) is an accessible diver with a cool mid-century aesthetic, but it’s the bi-colour day/night bezel ring that really catches the eye against the plain dial

The Aquascaphe is accessible, stylish and designed to give the wearer the best value for money

STEWART DAWSON VOYAGER

What is the most useful complication in watchmaking? It’s a question that’s long kept us up at night, tossing and turning trying to figure it out.

Could it be the chronograph? Well unless you’re a personal trainer or racing team, you probably don’t need a stopwatch on a regular basis. A date? Honestly, if you’ve lost track of the day that badly, a watch probably isn’t going to help. A moon phase? You have to be joking.

No, we’d posit that the most useful complication around is the humble GMT function. At the moment most of us aren’t travelling across time zones, but in this wonderful world of cross-continental Zoom calls, keeping track of the time in other countries is pretty vital.

Most of the time that means a GMT function integrated into the movement, generally in the form of a second hour hand. But that’s not the most elegant way of doing it. Rather than tinker with the bones of the movement, all you really need to do is add a rotating bezel – which is precisely what Stewart Dawson have done with their colourfully pared-back Voyager.

The Voyager, as the name suggests, is a travel watch, but in its simplest format. That means it keeps track of just two time zones which, to be honest, is all you really need when you’re actually jet-setting around the globe at some point in the hopefully not-toodistant future. One to track local time, one to track home time.

It does so by combining a standard three-hand watch with a rotating, 12-hour bezel. All you need to do to shift between timezones is to rotate it however many hours are necessary. No fiddling with the crown, no delicate calculations, just a simple, effective method to keep track of two time zones.

Because of that simplicity, Stewart Dawson have been able to have a bit of fun with the design. Primarily, that’s through colour as the Voyager is available in black, royal blue, fire truck red and a green that can only have its roots in the Amazon. They’re almost as eye-catching as they are affordable – which is to say incredibly so.

Each watch is equipped with a solid Japanese movement, less prestigious than Swiss but no less well-made. Squared away in a solid case with an equally solid 300m water resistance, it’s a lot of watch for the €650 – around £550 – it’ll set you back.

In fact, they’re a serious value proposition, offering not just a reliable movement and a wellbuilt case, but the kind of quality across the board you’d expect from a far pricier timepiece. Add in its colourful good looks and you have a watch well worth trying out.

Of the quartet, our favourite is most definitely the green. Compared to the usual dark, emerald colours you usually find on a diver, it’s a breath of fresh air, the kind of dial that gets noticed for all the right reasons. If you’re still looking for a great, everyday summer watch then this might just be it.