We have arrived at number 8! We are talking about the Opus of Harry Winstonwhich has so far had seven models to its credit, created with master watchmakers F.P. Journe, Antoine Preziuso, Vianney Halter, Christophe Claret, Felix Baumgartner, Greubel & Forsay and Andreas Strehler. The eighth edition, presented punctually at the Basel Show, is due to the exceptional skill of French master Frédéric Garinaud, in collaboration with CSH (Cellule de Spécialités Horlogères). The result is a vintage-style watch (with a rectangular case reminiscent of the typical shape of a television set), using a mechanical hand-wound movement combined with a modern digital dial. Inspired by the game of paintings with nails, which create three-dimensional images of objects pressed against them, the numbers on the dial only appear 'on demand', activated by a slide on the right side of the case. Nothing appears until the system is loaded. A plate holds the small segments together, both movable and fixed. Immediately underneath is a disc pulled by the movement, which runs independently in real time. When the system is loaded, the segments take position to display the time. As the plate descends, the small segments remain visible, 'locked' by the glass, allowing the time to be read for five seconds. Technically, all functions are related, allowing all information to be displayed on demand - the minute hand turns the hour hand to activate the AM/PM function.
On the left of the dial is a four-digit digital counter - two for the time and two for the time of day (morning or afternoon). At 20:00 the watch displays 08PM. To the right is an innovative minute indicator, arranged in a line from bottom to top. Based on segments of 5 minutes each, the indicator is an arrow-shaped ring. The hour and minute numbers recall the hexagonal segment characters that are typical of liquid crystal displays.
The back is decorated like a circuit board, with tracks connecting the various elements of the mechanism. At the top are the hours (H) and minutes (M), on the left the time of day (AM/PM) and on the right the 48-hour power reserve indicator (PRI). At the bottom are the watch's co-designers, Garinaud & CSH (Cellule de Spécialités Horlogères) and the serial number
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