Text Max MONTRE
In the world of fine watches, minimalism and maximalism are not mutually exclusive. A three-hand, two-hand, or even one-hand watch can appear very simple on the surface, yet boast highly complex inner workings.
Every few years, an exceptional phenomenon enters the stage of Haute Horlogerie, a brightly shining star in the watch sky that amazes aficionados and gives collectors glassy eyes. 2025 is such a year again. At the world’s most important watch fair, Watches and Wonders in Geneva, such a horological masterpiece was presented. It bears the somewhat unwieldy name Les Cabinotiers Solaria Ultra Grande Complication La Première, is the most complicated wristwatch in the world, and comes from Vacheron Constantin.
When it comes to maximalism, the Les Cabinotiers Solaria Ultra Grande Complication La Première
from Vacheron Constantin is ahead of the game. It is the current most complicated wristwatch in the world.
How could it be otherwise, one might add. After all, this traditional manufacturer, founded in 1755, is the oldest continuously operating watch atelier in the world and has repeatedly produced extraordinarily complex timepieces over the centuries. For example, the Celestia model in 2017, last year a pocket watch called The Berkley Grand Complication—the most complicated watch in the world to date: 63 complications or functions are built into it, the watch has 31 hands, measures 9.8 centimeters in diameter, is five centimeters high and weighs almost a whole kilo. In plain English: a real chunk. The Solaria is not exactly delicate either. It measures 45 millimeters in diameter with a height of 14.99 millimeters. But: For what the timepiece can do, its dimensions are almost tightly calculated. A total of 41 complications have been packed into the wristwatch, the new manufacture caliber 3655 has 1,521 movement parts. One (!) watchmaker worked on it for eight (!) years. This master of his craft also designed the movement.
With its thoroughly wearable size, the Solaria combines two currents of watchmaking in the best possible way: technical maximalism and the trend towards reduction. On the movement side, this is reflected in the miniaturization of the components to the limits of what is physically possible. See also the Octo Finissimo Ultra Tourbillon from Bulgari, in its capacity as the flattest mechanical wristwatch with tourbillon, which is only 1.85 millimeters high overall. A world record in this category. Although the question that is difficult to answer arises here: Is this now an example of maximalism or minimalism?
In any case, the latter is undoubtedly celebrating a comeback in design. This is expressed, among other things, by the fact that timepieces have been getting significantly smaller—i.e. more wearable—for several years. A look at the new products from Patek Philippe or A. Lange & Söhne shows this development: At Patek Philippe, the case of the square Cubitus presented in the previous year was reduced to 40 millimeters so that it would fit »every wrist«, according to the Geneva watch manufacturer.
Patek Philippe celebrates minimalist understatement with the new Calatrava.
You definitely need a connoisseur’s eye for the (expensive) platinum case.
The 1815 from A. Lange & Söhne, in turn, has been reduced to a downright delicate 34 millimeters (with a height of just 6.4 millimeters). According to the Glashütte-based manufacturer, this corresponds to »the desire of many watch lovers for an even more discreet version of this classic three-hand watch«. No compromises are made in terms of the quality of the caliber, which was specially developed for this manual winding model. Patek’s new Calatrava with a rose gold-colored dial strikes the same chord, celebrating minimalist understatement—because the (expensive) platinum case is only revealed to a trained eye.
The new Oyster Perpetual variants from Rolex also present themselves with unexcited pastel dials and in three different sizes. The smallest with 28 millimeters and a lavender-colored dial. Three hands, no date, not even the typical fluted bezel can be found on these probably most minimalist models from the prestigious precision watch manufacturer.
This new minimalism can certainly be understood as a reaction to the often articulated desire for a »more discreet design«—as A. Lange & Söhne, for example, has formulated it. At the same time, this development points to a broader social trend. «Minimalist aesthetics and questions about simplicity and excess» are currently being discussed intensively, as cultural scientist Heike Derwanz notes. According to her, minimalism influences everyday culture as well as debates about the meaning of things in our lives—especially those whose value goes beyond their purely functional use. An observation that can of course also be applied to the field of luxury watches. Here, the mechanisms of so-called »Veblen Goods« come into play — named after the economist and sociologist Thorstein Veblen, who showed that certain goods have a social added value that is defined, among other things—but not exclusively—by their price. The more expensive, the more desirable. In addition, there is an emotional charge, which is reflected not least in the symbolic function as a status object.
The new Oyster Perpetual models from Rolex also present
themselves with unexcited pastel dials and in three different sizes.
In contrast, there is the much-cited trend of »quiet luxury«—at least on the surface. Because even a deliberately understated watch remains a clear status symbol for those in the know—without any visual trumping. A Rolex remains recognizable in its (monetary) value, even if it avoids any loud gesture. The public effect is less important than the quiet confirmation within one’s own social environment.
At this point, it must of course also be mentioned that restraint in design is not currently the sole guiding principle. Such a counter-model can be found in a particularly remarkable form at Jacob & Co.—a brand that enjoys great popularity among a certain clientele. The maximalism staged here may sometimes tip into the grotesque in its design exaggeration, but the brand’s horological competence can hardly be denied.
However, such design outliers currently mark exceptions within an overall clearly recognizable trend towards design reduction. And this increased focus on subtle designs can also be read as an indication of an increased sensitivity to reduction and restraint—as a design response to a present that is often experienced as overcomplex and crisis-ridden. Minimalism is by no means a new phenomenon, as Heike Derwanz explains: »Religious texts and texts of Greek philosophy are fascinating historical sources that discuss moderation.« In the scientific field, minimalism and voluntary simplicity are now being considered primarily from the perspective of consumer research in economics and social sciences. »Minimalism itself appears as a collective term for different practices, aesthetics and motivations,« writes the scientist.
Speaking of aesthetics: In watch design, the term »timelessness« is often used in connection with minimalism. A timepiece receives this predicate when its appearance still appears fresh and exciting even after decades. When the design works just as well in 1972 as it does in 2025 and looks as tidy as, for example, the Chronograph 1 from Porsche Design. In its latest version, it takes up the legacy of its iconic ancestor, which was designed in 1972 by F. A. Porsche, the designer of the 911. »If you analyze the function of an object, its form becomes obvious,« is his approach. Porsche, whose work cannot be denied a certain purism, also designed the first timepiece in the watch world to be completely black with the Chronograph 1—inspired by the instrument panel of the 911.
Works in 2025 like 1972, the latest version of the Chronograph 1 from Porsche Design.
Anyone who deals with minimalism and watches will sooner or later come across the Bauhaus. A movement, an art school from the 1920s, to which contemporary watch designers also refer, such as Raúl Pagès, winner of the very first Louis Vuitton Watch Prize. »I am inspired by art history. In fact, I found a way of thinking in the Bauhaus that suits me: Form follows function. The minimalism typical of my style is an expression of this principle,« he admits to the Handelszeitung.
From the Bauhaus, it is not far to the Bauhaus student, artist and architect Max Bill, who designed a timeless, minimalist timepiece for Junghans with the watch of the same name. The max bill is perfectly legible and reduced to the essentials. Its origin was a kitchen clock that the Swiss Bill was to design together with his students on behalf of Junghans in 1956. Max Bill cleaned up and left only what is essential for a watch: The bars of the minute scale are clearly separated from each other. It is structured by slightly longer lines for the hours, which are marked by Arabic numerals. The numerals are based on types of modern print graphics and give an unmistakable picture despite all the sobriety. The kitchen clock dial can be found on the max bill wristwatches from 1961. Good design met and meets the zeitgeist. The model is a bestseller to this day.
A version of the max bill by Junghans as a chronograph.
Like hardly any other brand, the design principles of the Bauhaus movement are celebrated in Schramberg.
»Less is more«, to use the—admittedly—already worn-out quote from the architect Mies van der Rohe, has also been internalized at NOMOS in the aftermath of the Bauhaus. The Glashütte-based brand, founded after the fall of the Wall, has absorbed Bauhaus, Werkbund and minimalism with its mother’s milk (as well as good marketing). It is no coincidence that it is a member of the Deutscher Werkbund, a precursor movement of the Bauhauses and the Ulmer Schule. All of this is reflected in the face of the Tangente, that original watch that embodies the entire spirit of the manufactory and is still its bestseller today: a timepiece, straightforward and balanced, clear and simple—a classic.
If you look at the three-hand watches from H. Moser & Cie., you will also notice the striving for reduction and simplicity. There, they even go so far as to banish the company name, the logo and the obligatory »Swiss Made« from the dial. A self-confident statement and the commitment that nothing should distract from the essentials.
At Parmigiani Fleurier, this commitment to purism is called Tonda PF Micro-Rotor No Date. It manages with just two hands and is designed to please the »purists of purism«. At Parmigiani Fleurier, »luxury becomes an intimate art—a delicate interplay in which the purity of form guides innovation and centuries of watchmaking knowledge are transformed into objects of unobtrusive, almost silent beauty,« CEO Guido Terreni shares with us the brand’s philosophy.
At Parmigiani Fleurier, this commitment to purism is called Tonda PF Micro-Rotor No Date.
Breguet goes one better. The manufactory is also celebrating an anniversary this year—it is turning 250 years old—and is therefore presenting a one-hand watch. That’s all it takes to demonstrate watchmaking competence. After all, the brand’s namesake, Abraham-Louis Breguet, invented the tourbillon. Among other things.
And so the Classique Souscription 2025 impresses with a simplified architecture, both aesthetically and mechanically—visually embodied by just a single hand on a white enamel dial. Simple and easy to read, it is a child of the zeitgeist—but from 1797, when it was first advertised by Breguet in Paris. Apparently, people were already longing for clarity back then: It was the time of the French Revolution.
ARTICLE FIRST PUBLISHED IN CHAPTER №XII »SIMPLICITY« — SUMMER 2025
