CROWN March 2016

Ong Weisheng Stylist Formerly an in-house stylist for a high-society magazine, Weisheng brings eight years of experience to his freelance work. Fond of constructing mini sets for his shoots, Weisheng believes in tailoring his style to suit the subject matter; an approach evident in his evocative watch and jewellery spreads. Brian Jones Writer A freelance writer and editor who was born in the outskirts of Washington, D.C. and is currently based in the outskirts of Seoul. Along with writing on all things horological, he’s been known to pen pieces on men’s fashion, sports and popular culture. When he’s not writing, he can be found traveling the continent, fumbling in his attempts to speak the local tongues. Charmian Leong Writer After seven years of full-time employment, four of them spent writing…

Nothing embarrasses me more than being called a “watch expert”. No, really. The late Nicolas Hayek, founder of the Swatch Group; the late Gerald Genta, designer of iconic timepieces like the Royal Oak; living watchmaking legends like Philippe Dufour, Stephen Forsey, Eric Klein, Tino Bobe and Carole Forestier. These are watch experts; people who have devoted their entire lives to building the industry and perfecting the craft. Me? I am a magazine editor who has written about watches long and often enough to form an opinion. I might venture a prediction, or persuade you with a recommendation. But an expert? Well, he’s someone out there, a person that this magazine speaks to, so that we can all know where horology’s brightest minds are at. And the best thing about these…

“Luxury brands to truly grasp the meaning of emotion and value.”ANGELO BONATI, CEO, PANERAI “The watch industry can do with being more open and less cliquish.”Oliver Ebstein, CEO, Chronoswiss “LESS BULLSH**T AND MORE TRUTH FROM CEOS AT INTERVIEWS.”Vincent Perriard, CEO, HYT “A change of perception when it comes to training watchmakers. Bigger brands have the resources to nurture the next generation – and not just for themselves.”STEPHEN FORSEY, COFOUNDER, GREUBEL FORSEY “Less marketing, more originality.”PASCAL RAFFY, CEO, BOVET “The prevailing of true creativity. People must be sick of seeing the same watches marketed as something new each year.” MAX BUSSER, FOUNDER, MB&F “I WOULD LIKE TO SEE A NEW NUCLEUS OF WATCHMAKERS TO SPREAD THE CRAFT OF HAND-CRAFTED HOROLOGY.”Philippe Dufour, Master Watchmaker “For young watch CEOs to be loyal. There…

Another auction, another piece of the puzzle that is Abraham-Louis Breguet’s sprawling legacy continues to emerge. Last December, the Breguet Museum picked up two important vintage timepieces and several letters at three auctions that offer even more insights into the legendary watchmaker’s genius. There is the Breguet No.3104 pocket watch, a rare minute repeater and jumping hour complication, which boasts several ingenious mechanisms such as an inverted cylinder escapement and piston-activated gongs for the chiming feature. Sold in 1818 to a Spanish royal, the watch only recently resurfaced after 140 years. The other timepiece of note is the No.4720. First marketed in 1799, it is a ‘tact watch’ invented by Breguet to allow the user to tell the time by touch alone. This model features a regulator dial, with a…

When it was first announced in October 2015 that Christie’s was conducting a thematic sale of Omega’s Speedmasters, ‘Omega Speedmaster 50: From A Space Walk To Today’, Speedy fans the world over had a collective meltdown – in a good way, of course. Just a quick note for those who are unaware: the Omega Speedmaster is really one of the true great icons in modern watchmaking. Introduced in 1957, the collection garnered worldwide fame when it became the first watch to be worn on the moon, during the Apollo 11 mission. Known as the ‘Moonwatch’ ever since, the Speedmaster remains the only piece of equipment used on all of NASA’s piloted space missions. As in transpired, the 50-lot auction that took place in New York didn’t disappoint. For one, the…

With connected-this and smart-that dominating the watchmaking narratives in recent months, and luxury brands attempt to make sense of an impending large-scale tech invasion with their own versions of smartwatches, Swatch rocks up a simple and practical creation that makes its luxed-up brethren wonder why they didn’t think of something like this in the first place. Called Swatch Bellamy, the timepiece is a pay-by-the-wrist watch. Acting like a prepaid card on a watch, it allows the owner to pay for items via Visa’s contactless point-of-sales terminals, using embedded NFC-based (nearfield communications) technology. And why Bellamy? Well, it is named after Edward Bellamy, a sci-fi author who envisioned a world in which cash is replaced by credit and debit cards way back in 1888. But don’t get too excited yet, though.…