Here's a couple of images showing a watch designed by architect Will Alsop with Federico Grazzini for Alessi Watches.
Called Daytimer, the product features an OLED screen tilted towards the wearer by its plastic shell.
It was launched earlier this year and comes in five colours.
See all our stories about watches and clocks in our special category.
Here's some information from Alessi:
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The Alessi Watches collection represents one of the company’s first collaborations of the twenty-first century, cultivated in partnership with the Japanese watchmaker Seiko. The new 2009 models are designed by Stefano Giovannoni and Will Alsop with Federico Grazzini.
Daytimer is formed of Alsop's vision of objects in the world. We see it present in the landscape; it has landed in the universe of objects, naturally, effortlessly. It has a smart, adaptable, docile form, which encases it technological core while at the same time it is ironic and natural. Although apparently clumsy, Daytimer wraps complacently round the wearer's wrist, presenting the owner with is 3D display; the OLED screen conveniently turning towards its owner and wanting to play. Daytimer wants to be owned by its wearer, although inevitably it will attract the attention of others. Daytimer polygonises a human wrist. It loves humans and it wants to be close to them. Or part of them.
Englishman Will Alsop first worked with Alessi for the meta-design project Tea & Coffee Towers in 2003. He now presents his second project for Alessi, a collaboration with Federico Grazzini entitled “Daytimer”, a futuristic wrist-watch in red, green, violet and black polyurethane with a black face and blue digital display. Alsop has recently announced his retirement from architecture to launch a career as a painter, his strong colour palette clearly visible in these new watches.
I still find watches a strange thing. If you took away the display with the time, making it just a bangle, it would be nowhere near as desirable. Is that the power of function perhaps?
Alsop should have gone into the watch business way earlier.
more photos please!
really paul-frank-alike… what is a good thing in general… but somehow not compatible to the triangulation stuff imho
Where are these watches being sold?
Thanks, M.
Beautiful project!
I absolutely love it! I’m a big fan of Alsop, and I already sport an Alessi watch by Karim (great too!) so this is sure to be on my Christmas wish list! In one way it’s really 80s retro but with that Alsop twist that makes it very up to date!
plastic origami
Alsop’s design wins hands down against that of Morrison for Rado – posted a little time back. It’s a shame it’s not in ceramic.
Federico Grazzini + Time +Think + Thing
“It’s like tennis – you have to keep doing it all the time, whether you have a client or not. I believe that absolutely. You can speculate in your sketchbook – you’re allowed to think about anything, with or without a client.”
‘Alsop has recently announced his retirement from architecture to launch a career as a painter, his strong colour palette clearly visible in these new watches.’
This was not true, Alsop simply changed job…..read here:
http://www.architectsjournal.co.uk/news/daily-news/alsop-shock-art-career-was-ruse-im-off-to-rmjm/5208851.article
a fairly average watch.
if Alsops name (or even Alessi) wasnt on it, would you even look at it?
Alsop should give five of these watches away on Dezeen. :-)~
I guess my comment was a bit too honest…