By Osheen Arakelian
Only Watch 2015 has certainly raised a lot of eyebrows and left people a little shocked with the number of participants this year. However, it is not only the number of participants that have left me even a little speechless but the quality that is also evident when looking at some of these unique and beautiful timepieces. The latest entrant is Manufacture Dewitt, which we had to pleasure and honour of seeing and meeting at Baselworld 2015. One piece presented was the Academia Out of Time, which contrary to its name, has great timekeeping capabilities. This timepiece is the foundation for the Only Watch 2015 one off piece that is presented today by Dewitt and it’s sure to draw a lot of attention come action time.
Much of the Academia Out of Time has remained similar to its Baselworld 2015 counterpart with a few exceptions. The most beautiful exception being the ‘Metiers d’Art” dial that accompanies the rest of the complications presented on the dial in quite beautiful and vivid colours. Blue lacquer is used to represent the night sky and the perfect backdrop for the rest of the artwork. The hand-painted mountains and starry sky provide quite a stunning contrast next to the rose gold case and rose gold details on the dial.
The other features found on the dial represent the prowess of the Academia Out of Time and Dewitt as a high-end manufacture. Dewitt has presented two distinct ways of telling the time. These include the “dead-beat seconds” in the aperture that is located at roughly 4:30, that ticks once every second and not in the usual sweeping seconds motion. Secondly the “flying time”, that is a second register positioned at roughly 7:30. That features a black and white dotted disc that sweeps continuously under a black perforated surface and creates a sweeping evolution of the passing seconds.
Tucked beneath the dial lies the heartbeat of the piece. The manufacture DW1201 is a 217 component 38 jewel work of art that uses the manufacture DW5051 as its base. Visible through a sapphire crystal caseback, the movement is quite amazing to see and the meticulous level of detail is up there with the best of them (and that’s no small feat). Wrapped around a 42.5mm diameter rose-gold case, it keeps its styling and design cues much the same as the rest of the Manufacture Dewitt timepieces you will see. This, of course, includes the famous imperial columns on either sides along with the W etched onto the crown and dial.
A worthy addition to the Only Watch 2015 Charity Auction that will be held later on this year in Geneva for the first time in its illustrious history. For more info, please visit dewitt.ch
OSHEEN ARAKELIAN – CONTRIBUTING EDITOR
Drawing on a lifelong love of horology and a more recent introduction to the appreciation of fine whisky, Osheen brought the two together with watch & whisky. He is the proprietor of the site, which covers everything related to watches and whisky. In between completing a degree in commercial law and supporting a rich social life, he is out and about attending all the latest watch and whisky events Sydney has to offer. His passion has also taken him around Australia attending a number of events and he hopes to continue his career in the watch industry on a more serious level after he graduates. Read his articles here.
