Rising Stars in Watchmaking: Pushing Horology Forward
By: Chris Van Hoven | Posted: December 27, 2021
In the world of horology, large manufactures have long dominated the industry when it comes to producing well-loved timepieces. Independent watchmakers, on the other hand, are in the unique position of focusing on innovating new designs and new technologies that push the boundaries of modern watchmaking. Today, let us look at some of the rising stars in the industry and why they deserve to garner your attention.
Rexhep Rexhepi, Akrivia
Portrait of Kosovar-born independent watchmaker Rexhep Rexhepi.
(© Watches by SJX)
Rexhep Rexhepi was born in Kosovo into a middle-class family, as his father worked in Switzerland to make ends meet. It was during this time; he grew a fascination with watchmaking by tinkering with the movement behind his own father’s wristwatch. The young Kosovar and his family later migrated to Geneva as civil strife was brewing in the Balkan region. In a recent interview given to Monochrome Watches, he discussed how he turned his childhood passion into reality: “…By the age of 11, we moved to Switzerland. When you arrive at Geneva airport, the first thing you see is watch advertising everywhere. Everything was new to me, and the first thing I noticed was watches. I understood I was arriving in the country of watchmaking. I became more and more curious; I did a couple of internships and immediately got hooked on watchmaking. By 14, I knew what I wanted to do…” And at the age of 15, he apprenticed at Patek Philippe as a young watchmaker, where he would hone the skills that would allow him to start his watch brand, Akrivia, ten years later in 2012.
In Baselworld 2018, Rexhep debuted his Chronomètre Contemporain, a time-only watch with a grand feu enamel dial, hailed by some as being the single most beautiful timepiece in the world right now. It is also technically impressive, with its caliber RR-01 chronometer-grade movement featuring a 100-hour power reserve, a stop-seconds mechanism for precise time setting, and superb finishing visible through its display case back. Recently, he announced that he will stop producing this seminal model and presented its successor, the Rexhep Rexhepi Chronomètre Contemporain II (RRCCII). It features an opaque grand feu and translucent flinqué dial with a new manual-winding movement with a dead-beat second complication and consisting of a mere fourteen components and encased in platinum crafted by the legendary case maker Jean-Pierre Hagmann who was called out of retirement to personally fabricate the case. The first production model sold for a record price of CHF800,000 (US$875,000) at the OnlyWatch charity auction held in Geneva last November 2021.
The Chronomètre Contemporain is the first watch in Akrivia’s collection launched in 2018.
(© Akrivia)
Hajime Asaoka, Hajime Asaoka and Kurono Tokyo
Portrait of Japanese independent watchmaker Hajime Asaoka.
(© Deployant)
Born in 1956 and a graduate of the prestigious Tokyo University of the Arts, Hajime Asaoka is one of the most talented watchmakers of our time. Following a successful career in product design, he taught himself the skills needed to make his timepieces through his reading of George Daniels’ reference book Watchmaking, and his careful watching of YouTube videos began producing high-quality wristwatches by hand. As described in a profile written by the Singaporean journalist Peter Chong of Deployant, Asaoka purchased an array of materials including his very-own CNC machine from eBay to craft his own tools for his watch craft. In 2005, he began producing his timepieces and later produced his first concept tourbillon in 2009. By 2011, he transformed his earlier concept into a very first tourbillon production model, the Tourbillon #1. Since then, Hajime Asaoka has continued to produce high-end timepieces such as the three-headed Tsunami, the Project T Tourbillon, the lightweight Tourbillon Pura, and his very-first open-worked Chronograph.
Hajime Asaoka’s “Tsunami” from the private collection of photographer Gary Getz (left) and an example of the Miyota-powered Kurono known as the Anniversary 朱鷺 (Toki) (right) has become a great hit amongst watch enthusiasts upon its launch in 2021.
(© Gary Getz/Quill and Pad; © Kurono Tokyo)
While his creations are highly limited with many of them being piece unique, Hajime Asaoka’s sub-brand, Kurono Tokyo makes his creations more accessible. While still bearing the same design DNA of his more expensive pieces, the timepiece under his sub-brand makes use of the mass-produced Miyota produced caliber 90S5 automatic movement yet keeps its quantities very limited, with collectors always lined up to grab a piece of their timepieces gaining significant popularity in the past few years.
Naoya Hida, Naoya Hida & Co.
Portrait of former watch executive turned independent watchmaker Naoya Hida.
(© Deployant)
Naoya Hida is well-known within the Japanese watchmaking community, having held prominent roles in sales and marketing at Japanese distributors for several top brands such as Ebel, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Breguet, and Vacheron Constantin in the 1990s. In the 2000s, Hida helped in bringing attention to the timepieces of François-Paul Journe into the Japanese market with tremendous success and later continued with his work with Richemont’s joint venture with Ralph Lauren of the Ralph Lauren Watch & Jewelry Company. A great fan over vintage timepieces, particularly with early Calatravas by Patek Philippe of the 1930s, he had always longed for minimalist designed timepieces in comparison to what was trending within the general watch community as he pointed in an interview he gave to The New York Times:“…Very bling-bling models with gold bracelets and diamonds — that’s what was trendy back then. So, I had two choices: Give up or make my ideal watch…” And the rest as they said is history. In 2018, he established his namesake brand, Naoya Hida & Co. producing timepieces that evoke a classic vintage charm while using cutting-edge technologies to achieve his vision.
Recently, the brand launched the manual-wound NH Type 1C featuring a hand-engraved dial with Breguet numerals filled with a synthetic urushi lacquer made out of cashews. All of Hida’s creations are encased cases with SUS 904L, a type of high-grade stainless steel that has been utilized predominantly by luxury watch brands, particularly Rolex. These are powered with caliber 7750 Valjoux movements that have been modified to include a special manual winding mechanism. With a production run of only ten (10) pieces per year has become highly sought amongst watch enthusiasts globally.
The 37mm Naoya Hida & Co. NH Type 1C. (© Naoya Hida & Co.)
Benjamin Chee, Celadon HH
Portrait of the Singaporean watch collector and entrepreneur Benjamin Chee.
(© Celadon HH)
Founded in 2021 by Singaporean vintage watch collector turned entrepreneur Benjamin Chee, Celadon HH aims to introduce Chinese haute horlogerie to the world by combining in-house movements with excellent hand finishing and exquisite Chinese craftsmanship. The Celadon Century collection features cloisonné enamel dials hand-crafted in the atelier of Grandmaster Xiong Songtao, whose own family has previously worked as enamel artisans in the imperial workshop during the Qing dynasty. The Century Cloisonné “Starry Night” was a nominee in the “Petit Aiguille” category at the 2021 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève Awards (GPHG) and features the famous artwork by the Dutch Post-Impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890), painstakingly recreated in minute detail. The movement, exclusive to Celadon HH, is conceived and created from the ground up by master watchmaker and member of the prestigious Académie Hologère de Créateurs Indépendants (AHCI) Lin Yong Hua specifically for the Celadon Century. The manual-winding watch features a three-quarter bridge plated in rose gold with sweeping rounded curves and set with rubies, that is finished Chinese calligraphy done by hand.
The Century Cloisonné “Starry Night” that was nominated in the 2021 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève Awards (GPHG). (© Celadon HH)
Pushing Horology Forward
In an industry with a penchant for rehashing and “updating” decades-old designs and aesthetics, independent watchmakers are providing some much-needed excitement to the watch community, with innovative creations that explore creativity and maintain a level of high-quality craftsmanship that can only mean great things for the future of watchmaking.
Do you wish to add one of the finest timepieces from the leading independents? Visit the Vintage Grail website to know more. For more information, contact us at [email protected] or contact us at (+63) 917 159 1211.
