288 articles found · page 2 of 10
Quill & Pad
With the 2023 edition of the GPHG nearly upon us, Joshua Munchow shares his thoughts and predictions from his first year as a member of the GPHG Academy.
Quill & Pad
Another year, another GPHG. Martin Green always likes to approach these awards as a way to view the state of the industry. Of course, it only shows part of it, as not all brands compete, but it still gives a good idea.
Quill & Pad
Well, despite ever-present COVID, the war in Ukraine, and a property crash in China, the world’s economy has held together enough to make 2023 a fantastic year for fine watchmaking. Here are Ian Skellern's predictions for the watches to win prizes at the 2023 GPHG.
Quill & Pad
Joshua Munchow kicks off the first short videos highlighting GPHG Academy members. Joshua is Quill & Pad's resident 'nerd writer' and in this short video clip he explains what he does and being in the GPHG Academy.
Quill & Pad
As GPHG Academy members, GaryG, Joshua Munchow, and Ian Skellern have been asked to nominate watches for consideration in the 2023 GPHG. And while they spend much of our lives immersed in the world of watches, they don’t know of everything out there and there may well be, and are likely to be, gems that they are not aware of. So please send us your suggestions and recommendations for watches in the 15 categories listed.
Quill & Pad
The last couple of GPHGs were hit by COVID, but the 2022 GPHG was finally again an event and a party as it should be! Tout le monde was in Geneva, celebrating watchmaking at its finest. Here are our thoughts on the winners and how well we did at predicting them.
Time+Tide
The GPHGs each year are a big moment for the watch industry. But as spectators, some find particular prize categories quite confusing – especially if they do not speak French. So, this week, in our biggest crossword yet, see just how well you understand the prize categories. Some are absolutely obvious, others may take a … ContinuedThe post Time+Tide Weekend Watch Crossword: #27 “GPHG Prize Categories” appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
Editor’s Note: Yesterday, the 2022 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) was held. For those who don’t know, it is basically the Oscars of watchmaking. But while there are many prizes to win, one stands above the rest: the “Aiguille d’Or” Grand Prix prize. And this year’s winner is the MB&F;, Legacy Machine Sequential EVO. So … ContinuedThe post MB&F; Sequential EVO takes home the “Aiguille d’Or” Grand Prix prize at 2022 GPHG Awards appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Quill & Pad
The GPHG Aiguille d'Or is always one of the most difficult prizes to predict, not only because all the watches entered are free to be chosen from, but also because so many are so good. The watch needs to be exceptional to win and it might even be a clock. What does our panel choose?
Quill & Pad
Finally! After years of discussion that clocks should have a place, and some instances of clocks being included in categories that made little sense in 2021, the GPHG has created a category just for mechanical clocks. And, boy, what a complete smorgasbord of mechanical ingenuity! But what to choose?
Quill & Pad
The 2022 GPHG Artistic Crafts finalists include some unique pieces, some small series pieces, and one comparatively large-volume piece (of 100 examples) by a bigger producer. All are beautiful and rare in their decorations, which include guilloche, engraving, enamel work, miniature painting, wood marquetry, gem setting, and Japanese lacquer work. So how did our peanut gallery vote?
Time+Tide
With the 2022 edition of the GPHG awards approaching, I decided it was time to see how well you remember some of last years winners. Find out in this weeks crossword below.The post Time+Tide Weekend Watch Crossword: #25 “GPHG 2021 Winners” appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Time+Tide
Chinese watchmaking has been getting an increasing amount of recognition, and deservedly so, with CIGA Design seemingly leading this expansion. First being awarded the Challenge Watch Prize at the 2021 edition of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, the brand has once again been recognised for their achievements, this time by another important Swiss institution, … ContinuedThe post The GPHG-winning CIGA Design Blue Planet inducted into Geneva’s Musée d’Art et d’Histoire appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Quill & Pad
We finally arrive at the 2022 GPHG Jewellery category, which is often the most varied in opinion as there is such wide room for taste. Seen among the competing watches are a couple familiar faces, a few bold choices, and even a wild card that might have gotten lost while carrying a pouch full of diamonds through a particle accelerator. What does our peanut gallery think? It's divided.
Quill & Pad
What a pleasure to find a majority of real diver's watches in the GPHG shortlist this year. While they can be worn without any worries behind the desk, as they most likely will be in 99.99 percent of cases, they are also up for some serious diving. Here is what our peanut gallery had to say about the nominees.
Quill & Pad
Now we are onto the big bad boys of the GPHG. Mechanical Exception is where we put the most mechanically incredible watches head to head, and the name of the game is horological creativity. Aesthetics help but a wild, avant-garde watch can easily win this category because there is no limit. So how does our panel choose?
Quill & Pad
Astronomical complications are poetic in nature, more emotional than practical. Calendar complications are the exact opposite: perfectly practical and useful complications for time management. Since the category doesn’t dictate specifically what should be valued and only outlines what fits into the category, it leaves a lot up to our panel on what we subjectively value more and why in this latest round table of 2022 GPHG nominations.
Quill & Pad
The GPHG Iconic category honors models with real staying power, requiring them to have had a lasting influence as a collection for more than 20 years. Our panel doesn't like the category, but it sure does have a unanimous winner.
Quill & Pad
Now that we’ve reached the Men’s Complication category, we start hitting Joshua Munchow's favorite part of the GPHG: mechanical awesomeness. See what our panel has to say about the watches in this category and which watch we think is the best unisex timepiece of 2022!
Quill & Pad
The Men’s is one of the more contentious GPHG categories every year because it is filled with amazing watches that may or may not have much in common but do have distinctive aesthetics. Since that is very subjective, our panel is reminded that the category is essentially asking which watch is the most versatile, wearable, and appeals to the broadest demographic. And, yet, our peanut gallery is divided practically down the middle!
Quill & Pad
The best thing about these six GPHG 2022 Ladies’ Complication watches is the variety of complications. Yes, we still have two traditional tourbillons, but the other four complications are anything but traditional. But, our panel asks, why are the tourbillons for ladies not competing in the main tourbillon category?
Quill & Pad
The 2022 GPHG finalists have been announced and GaryG gives a shoutout to several of the entries that he feels are of special merit or interest. He suspects that some, but not all, of them will be his winner picks but reserves the right to change his mind when the annual round tables commence.
Quill & Pad
The 2022 edition of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) has just published its list of shortlisted (“nominated”) watches in the runup to the eagerly anticipated red-carpet event in Geneva on November 10, 2022. Ian Skellern shares all of the finalist watches in each category here. Let us know your favorites!
Time+Tide
During my time at Time+Tide, the flow of curious timekeepers coming across my desk has been constant, yet, the CIGA Design Blue Planet stands out as one of the more notable ones. As the first Chinese brand to ever win an award at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, claiming the Challenge Watch Prize in … ContinuedThe post MICRO MONDAYS: The CIGA Design Blue Planet won a GPHG award, yet is still surprisingly affordable appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
SJX Watches
The preeminent – and perhaps only international – awards for watchmaking, Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG), has just announced the competing timepieces of 2022. We are please that one of own editions, the Kudoke 2 “Zodiac”, is competing in “Artistic Crafts”. Created last year for the 10th anniversary of SJX Watches, the Kudoke 2 “Zodiac” is a candidate alongside marques like Voutilainen and Hermes in a category that calls for “exceptional mastery of one or several artistic techniques such as enamelling, lacquering, engraving, guilloché (engine-turning), skeleton-working, etc.” The Zodiac is all about engraving – done by hand naturally – with both the front and back decorated in relief and textures. Both the dial and movement are fully engraved by the hands of the skilful artisans at Kudoke. The hand engraving is extensive and complete, with is nothing on the dial or movement that is engraved by machine – even the brand name on the dial is executed by hand. But the Zodiac is more than just artisanal technique. It is also an artistic creation: the hour symbols on the dial were commissioned especially for the watch and drawn by Canadian illustrator Lee Yuen-Rapati, who’s now the in-house designer at Fears. He cleverly combined both a sign of the zodiac and Roman numeral into each hour markers. The marker at ten, for instance, is Aquarius but also contains “X”, the Roman numeral for “10”. To echo the celestial theme on the fr...
Time+Tide
What did you achieve during the pandemic? For most of us, when we look back at the last couple of years of lockdowns and sabotaged plans, the answer to that question is “precious little”. Unless, of course, you count gaining 5kg, drinking reckless amounts of gin and becoming pathetically addicted to Wordle. Andrea Furlan, however, … ContinuedThe post How Furlan Marri went from Kickstarter to GPHG winner in seven months appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
SJX Watches
A member of Switzerland’s diplomatic corps for some two decades – he was the Swiss Consul General in New York City until 2007 – Raymond Loretan was tapped to become the President of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) in 2018. Just before the 2021 awards ceremony took place in Geneva, we sat down with Mr Loretan to get his thoughts on how the GPHG has evolved and where it is going. Raymond Loretan making the opening speech at the 2021 GPHG ceremony. Photo – GPHG Benjamin Teisseire: You have overseen profound changes at the GPHG since you took over as president in 2018. Is everything going as planned? Raymond Loretan: So far yes. We created the Academy last year and it represents a big change in paradigm for the Grand Prix. It worked well with the 350 members but with some glitches, which we have now learned from. This year, it worked even more smoothly with over 500 members of the Academy. No technical issues with the digital platforms and academicians were involved at all stages in the selection process. But the goal is to double this number of academicians in the next two to three years. That’s because it is the way to assert the three principles on which the Grand Prix is built. First of all is the Neutrality that has been questioned in the past. With this new way of working, this important pillar will be guaranteed. The second one is Universality. The more people coming from all over the world, the better this diversity will be represented. And it...
Quill & Pad
The GPHG foundation describes the Aiguille d’Or as “. . . rewarding the best overall watch among all the categories (best in show), also deemed the most representative of the watch industry as a whole. It is the most prestigious award.” In this last GPHG prediction discussion of the 2021 edition, our panel reveals who we think might win the 2021 Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève's big prize.
Quill & Pad
The rules for the GPHG's Jewellery category state that the watches must demonstrate exceptional mastery of the art of jewelry and gem setting and are also distinguished by the choice of stones featured in them. Once again our panel has a favorite, but there's no consensus.
Quill & Pad
Complication abounds in the 2021 GPHG Calendar and Astronomy category: two perpetual calendars – one of which is of world record-holding thinness – a complete calendar with chronograph, a clever day-date that you can’t help but smile at, a mind-blowingly beautiful moon phase watch, and the world’s smallest planetarium. And our panel members all (well, nearly all) have different favorites to win!
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