REF. ZERO

Beyond the obvious names. Researching the makers, movements and references worth knowing.

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

The Berneron Mirage Miroir doesn't really have a dial.

Calibre 283 becomes the display: guilloché marks the hours, its architecture organises the face, and the seconds wheel becomes a running indicator.

Not just a movement put on show. A movement designed to be the watch's face.

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

The interesting part of Studio Underd0g's new Chan3ad isn't really the fish-inspired dial.

The idea grew out of its Design Lab at Dubai Watch Week, where people were invited to design watches.

Now one of those conversations has become a 100-piece production watch with Ahmed Seddiqi.

I like the idea of a watch event leading to an interesting collaboration.

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

My favourite detail from the FounderFest releases might be what two of the brands tried for the first time.

Baltic: its first forged-carbon dial.

Furlan Marri: its first three-link bracelet.

Always nice when a collaboration gives a brand an excuse to try something new.

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

A lot of independent watchmaking is converging on London today.

Days of the Independents has 34 brands in Mayfair, from Atelier Wen and Felipe Pikullik to Laurent Ferrier and Konstantin Chaykin.

FounderFest takes seven younger brands, puts the founders at the centre and mixes the watches with music.

Two very different ideas of what an independent watch event can look like.

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

@NAOTO_WATCH That’s really useful context, thank you.

Knowing the suppliers were collaborating on developing this alongside you makes the three-year journey much easier to understand. And the final result is stunning!

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

One of my favourite ideas from Geneva Watch Days had nothing to do with a new watch.

20 people were given Sellita movements and asked to regulate them as close to 0 seconds/day as possible.

Students from the Geneva Watchmaking School coached them. COSC then tested the movements.

Probably a better way to understand mechanical accuracy than reading another spec sheet.

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

Hajime Asaoka considered Saxe blue for last year’s Kurono Calendrier, couldn’t quite let the idea go, so Kurono made a small batch anyway.

I really like the idea behind Small Batch Releases: unallocated movements and components turned into off-calendar watches Asaoka simply wants to make.

Images: Kurono Tokyo

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

Good to see Berneron and Singer join the 2027 edition alongside Breitling, Gallet and Universal Genève.

The line between the establishment and the independents keeps getting harder to draw.

[watchesandwonders @watcheswonders]

13 new brands, a new scenography, a seven-day ‘In The City’ program and that’s just the beginning. We’re excited. Are you?

Join us in Geneva to celebrate the cultural capital of watchmaking, 5–11 April 2027.

We look forward to welcoming you!

#WatchesAndWonders2027

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

Lots of talk about watches and artists today with the Hublot x Jeff Koons launch, so dropping this here.

FAYY’s debut uses Chinese inner-painting on the underside of its sapphire crystal.

Hours, minutes and seconds sit on separate discs, leaving the centre almost entirely to the artists craft.

The watch has been designed around getting time out of the art’s way.

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

@GlobalWatchClub I’m not a fan, but at least they actually let the collaboration change the watch, rather than just putting an artist’s name on the dial.

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

Kollokium released the Projekt 01 Variant H today.

Its die-cast steel case surrounds 488 hand-applied Lichtblock markers, packed with around two grams of Super-LumiNova. Inside is the dependable La Joux-Perret G101.

The first drop has already sold out, with the next batch due at the end of September.

It’s also the final iteration of Projekt 01. Three years after launching the brand with it, Kollokium is choosing to move on rather than endlessly iterate a successful design.

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

REFZERO VERDICT

A radical first watch can be a statement. The harder test is what survives the second model.

ART 02 changes case, bracelet, movement, proportions and production model — yet remains unmistakably ALTO.

That is beginning to look like a language.

REF.005 ✓ - 8/8

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

REF.005 - ALTO

ALTO launched in 2024 with a 25-piece titanium debut.

ART 02 is its first permanent collection: new case, bracelet and movement, but unmistakably related.

When does a radical first watch become a design language?

1/8 🧵

[REF. ZERO @Refzerowatch]

The commercial shift matters too.

ART 01 First Edition: 25 pieces, €19,100 before tax.

ART 02: non-limited, €13,100 before tax, with first deliveries from November 2026.

Progression here doesn’t simply mean rarer or more expensive.

7/8