Fastwong
1658
Yeah, it looks like a Star Trek watch. As it should!
- Image from GPHGP
With the great covid watch bubble De Bethune has been able to capture a lot more attention and WB has pulled Denis out of the shop and into the spotlight. This has all done a lot to help people understand the brand, the technology, the innovation, and the people behind the watches but I think there is a piece of the story that has been left in the appendix that explains the philosphy of the design and connection to space without which some might dismiss the aesthetic as Star Trek luxury.
Part of that story which has been relegated to the archives is David Zanetta's influence on the brand. Through him we see the passion, the crazy, and the philosophy of the brand and it's start which helps explain the aesthetic of the brand today:
There's another interview which I've been unable to find but it connected these concepts and emotions to the intentional connection of space and the universe to time to the watch and then the individual through art and design. I know that comes across as a little woo woo but it is is everywhere in watchmaking just represetned differently. Moon phases, perpetual calendars, sidereal time, complication has been the go-to method of going beyond earth time and acknowledging time and space on the wrist. Looked at from this perspective helps connect De Bethune to more traditional watchmaking:
- from Patek
- from Deployant
- from Revolution
Maybe that's the stretch of all stretches but I hope it adds another dimension of the design aesthetic to consider beyond Stat Trek. Similarly, from a technical perspective instead of developing up - more complicaitons, more ways of representing time, more - De Bethune looked inwards, the balance, the tourbillon. Maybe that's a different post and also a stretch but I think it helps contextualize other ways of valuing innovation and complication.
More posts:
Yeah, it looks like a Star Trek watch. As it should!
- Image from GPHGP With the great covid watch bubble De Bethune has been able to capture a lot more attention and WB has pulled Denis out of the shop and into the spotlight. This has all done a lot to help people understand the brand, the technology, the ...
Excellent post. Thanks for sharing.
I’ve always been a fan of the brand and it’s ethos and designs. I’m now worried about the effect of the Watchbox ownership on the brand. Some of the recent issues appear to come out of focus group input as opposed to being true brainchild’s of the watchma...
Yeah, I see that too but I'm okay with it, servicing has improved and there's more certainty in longevity of the brand... Like Porsche needing to sell SUVs.
I'll be shopping the back catalog if the prices ever come back to earth. What maybe grinds my gears more is the marketing. They intentionally chose to forget Zanetta in the origin story and I get it, they want the front man to be the one still with the co...
😂 @ the final dialogue.
Starry varius (still has a celestial theme) and DB digitale (central sun and rotating hour/minutes) are the only models that I’m interested in
Brilliant!! Thank you Fastwong for a wonderful post.
DB is magic, and yes, it needs to be understood where that came from.
I have [soon to be had :( ] a db28XP Steel wheels
most incredible watch ever, amazingly built, incredible detail, casework was top notch, the blued titanium. i could go on.
Missed this when you posted it originally. A great post as always, and you’re dead right as usual.
It’s a tricky balance, they’ve got one guy they need to sell the brand and sell the watches. And he’s an important one. But I’m with you, the other guy gave the watches the real personality and individuality that for most purchasers is the differentiating...
