Andrew McCutchen
Editor’s note: This article first appeared in Issue 9 of Time+Tide NOW magazine. Issue 9 can be found in both physical and digital formats on the T+T shop, offering further industry insights, inspiring interviews, and of course a complete watch buying guide.
There are some truly surreal moments in this watch’s life. One is that things like this happen more often than I ever dreamed. The phone rings. I saw the notification, clicked on it, and it was from Emmanuel Gate, one of the greatest watch designers alive. That in itself is strange enough. I mean, I’ve written countless stories about that guy. And I’ve been talking about him ever since I first learned that he designed Audemars Piguet Offshore when he was just 20 years old. What a crazy claim to fame. Especially considering the legend surrounding its launch, culminating in the scene where Gerard Genta himself storms into the Audemars Piguet booth in Basel, tracks down Gaye and his seniors, and “makes his thoughts known.” One photo of Gate is particularly symbolic to me. He stares straight into the camera through black-rimmed glasses and is curiously biting his thumb. This pose shouldn’t work, but somehow it makes you feel the best of masculinity, the best of style, the best of authenticity.
The afternoon sun shines on the folds of his denim shirt and touches the underside of the Royal Oak Offshore bracelet on his wrist. He designed the watch and persuaded former Audemars Piguet president Stephen Urquhart to release it in 1997. I use this watch in every article I can. In fact, I have it in my favorites folder. Along with the current Lenny Kravitz in the gym and Harrison Ford riding his bike looking jacked, that’s a talismanic image of authenticity to me.
This is the very picture that appears in the title bar when WhatsApp pings frequently. Somehow we became friends. When a new watch comes out on Instagram and I ping it, a 30-word summary will be waiting for me in my feed. On an even better day, you’ll see a sketch of a watch he’s developing. It’s difficult to explain how or why this happened. As I’ve talked with Gate so many times about the essence of watch design, I’ve come to see him as more than just an image or an icon. Now we can contextualize his work and design ethos in lesser-known collections. He has finished work for Tiffany, Ikepod, and Rolex. He believes that the common thread and driving force behind his designs are his father’s words. “Your design should be recognizable from 10 barstools away.”
To illustrate this point, we tried it one day at a restaurant in London. That’s right, I could easily identify his new unreleased model as a Tiffany watch. This is a square model with a mirror-polished slanted bezel and a chached, Tiffany blue dial. It immediately reminded me of Tiffany & Co.’s eponymous “square” watch from 2017, but with a very odd and asymmetrical logo placement. So check Emmanuel. Could he prove my identity? Not a chance. Balto x Peter Auto Tricompax! The idea came from the game. Can you name Emmanuel’s five favorite designs and five missed opportunities in this feature? He grinned devilishly and bit his thumb for the sake of the story. Let’s just say. So the story began.
hit songs
Audemars Piguet Mini Royal Oak
“OK, the first one is the revival of the Royal Oak “Mini Oak”, a watch I designed in 1997. I had a lot of fun designing it. As you know, it was a quartz movement and had pushers to change the time. And we incorporated a pusher into the fake crown. So it was a lot of fun to work on this. Then I made some examples using diamonds, hearts, and teddy bears. It was a lot of fun. So I was very happy to see them come back. The difference between these is the finish. They use this finish. It has a special finish. I don’t know what to call it. (Frost Gold). The only change I don’t really like is the thickness. I think it’s very thick. I also really like the sand gold model. I thought the gold was beautiful, not too bright, not too yellow, very pale and soft, fun to look at. ”
TAG Heuer Formula 1 × Kiss
“Another hit is the TAG Heuer Formula 1. I’m very happy and excited to have them back. When I discussed this piece with someone at LVMH, they said, ‘Who am I and where am I from? I remember him saying, “I have to constantly remember what’s going on.” And TAG comes from plastic watches. The brand’s first success was plastic and aluminum watches. At the time of its release, they were producing 600,000 watches a year. It was truly incredible. This new version is a little expensive for my taste. $1,600 is a lot for a plastic watch, but I was very happy to see this one. I researched F1 in 2016 and designed a few different models, but I remember being told ‘no’ at the time. Once again, we were ahead of our time! ”
hermes cut
“I like it very, very, very, very much! It’s a non-genre watch. It’s for women, but men can wear it without any problem. It’s not perfect, I really don’t have enough Hermès to suit my taste. It has a slightly Parisian feel. I feel like Watches and is missing. I had a friend who actually bought that watch during the Wonders period. I think the metal bracelet looks a little cheap. It’s sparkly, sparkly, a little too flashy, but it’s still a beautiful watch. The case is nice. I love the little orange dots. I put a turquoise dot on the Tiffany crown. It’s little details like that that make the watch special.”
Burnelon Mirage
“Next up is Sylvain Berneron. The watches he designed went crazy, but that’s not surprising, because the watches are beautiful. In fact, he did what Cartier should have done. I’m glad it was an outsider who made this watch. Everything is a mirage. Everything is broken. Even the movement is different, and it’s so beautiful. You just feel a sense of sensuality. You want to touch it and caress it. I’m a big fan of this watch.
Toledano & Chan B/1
“My last shoes are Toledano & Chan because they are different and actually 2 Because you can wear it the way you like it, because there’s no logo on the dial, so you can wear it with the crown on your wrist, or with the crown on the other side. It’s tough as a design. But it works very well. I contacted (Phil) Toledano and said, “That watch has a gold bracelet, a leather strap, or a crocodile. You can see that it’s attached.” And he said, “Oh my god, that’s great!” It has great potential. And he can play incredibly with different metals, even stainless steel and gold. ”
mistake
Audemars Piguet (Re)Master 02
“They have great historical watches here, but I don’t know, they got everything wrong. The thickness, the size, the dial, the lugs, the logo is so big, the crown… What did they do there, Royal Oak Crown? When this first watch was introduced, Royal Oak was not designed. It was released in 2007. So I don’t know. And it should have been mechanical and hand-wound to make it slimmer. Also, if it should be automated. Use a micro rotor to keep it slim. Very disappointing. The idea is great and the original watch is great, but this could have been better.
Piaget Polo 79
“Second is the new Piaget Polo 79. This is the same problem as the AP (Re)Master02. They have very beautiful original watches. My father designed the original Polo, so perhaps I ask It’s not a good one, but it lacks the elegance of the original Polo, which can be laid flat on the table. The new bracelet doesn’t lie flat like the oak one does. Another big difference is of course the thickness, as it has an automatic movement. However, the crown should have been hidden behind the case.
arnold & son longitude
“Why? Why is this kind of stainless steel integrated watch just like any other watch? I don’t understand it. It’s not beautiful either. Why is such a niche brand, with such a wonderful and important place and history, so different from others? Look like your brand So many brands make the same mistake. Sartoli Billard, Čapek, Moser, they all make the same mistake. Use your imagination and stop wasting your time. You’re never royal. You can never be an orc, and you can never be a nautilus.”
tag heuer monaco skeleton
“I don’t like the TAG Heuer Monaco Skeleton. I don’t think people should modify an iconic watch and make it complicated with so many elements on the dial, especially if it’s designed from a computer. Yes, if it’s machine cut. So for me, it’s the watchmaker who opens the dial, takes out the metal, angles it and does the finishing touches…”
Bvlgari Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC
“I think that’s incredible, you know. What we’ve achieved with thinness. But when the lugs are thicker than the case, you have a problem. If you have to make the bracelet larger than the case, The problem is that this watch has a There’s a lot of ingenuity in the way the sps are skeletonized and closed, and there are some very clever touches, but it’s just meant to make a statement, so it’s different in form and function. It’s definitely moving into the stratosphere.”
