When it comes time to purchase a watch, everyone has their own specific set of standards and measurements that they utilise to measure the personal value of the timepiece and from there, debate if it is worth adding on to their collection. Different people admire different facets within the world of horology, be it a fond love for a traditional or classic make, or efficiency and sophistication over all else, to each their own is a mantra that watch aficionados are often bound by. Yet if the spirit of exploration lives through you and conventionality is something you would rather forgo for emotional connections and quirkiness, Romain Jerome is the brand you should keep your eye on.
The Spacecraft Watch
With a strong resemblance to a spaceship straight out of the ‘Star Wars’ universe, the Spacecraft draws its muse from the 1970s and 80s idea of futurism. This trapeze-shaped timepiece is a niche model, and is certainly avant-garde in its presentation. Bearing four complex functions – lateral, linear, jumping and retrograde hours, the movements of this timepiece are impressive and are truly as out of this world as its namesake. Collaborated on ,with Romain Jerome, by famed watch designer Eric Giroud and the one of the most prolific watchmakers of our time, Jean-Marc Wiederrecht, this distinctive timepiece is definitely one you should look out for if you are into making statements loud enough for the universe to take notice.
Moon Invader Collection
Retro video games have come back full force from their days of seclusion, with the big league titles collaborating with RJ for a nostalgic throwback to simpler days. Serving as a homage to the 1980s, the titles that were reinvented as luxury timepieces are Tetris, Space Invaders, Donkey Kong, Super Mario Bros. and Pac-Man. Included in the brands Moon Invader collection, all of the watches contain materials from the Apollo 11 Moon landing.
Each of the watches within the collection have their own individual elements such as, SuperLumiNova Luminant being used on the tips of the watch hands and characters of the Pac-Man watch, the Super Mario Bros. timepiece using a movement called the Calibre RJ001-A, an automatic movement that runs at 4Hz with 42 hours of power reserve and the Tetris timepiece having each individual block hand produced from coloured anodised aluminium. RJ is renowned for using their chronographs to invoke emotional connections and with these watches celebrating popular cultural influences still running through society today, it’s definitely hard to pass up on the reminiscent emotions that these icons bring forth.
Eyjafjallajökull-DNA VolcanoÂ
Crafted in celebration of the eruption of the Icelandic volcano, Eyjafjallajökull, the timepiece of the same namesake draws from its muse immensely from design to functionality, even paying homage to the explosion with an engraving of an erupting volcano on the caseback. If you’ve never been to Iceland, purchasing this watch will allow you to keep a piece of the volcano with you as the bezel and dial are both crafted from ash found in the volcano, with steel to reinforce the bezel. Designed by Daniel Haas and André Martinez, the former whom crafts the lava rock and the latter who paints the red fissures on the dial representing lava, this watch genuinely encompasses the beauty and fear that comes with watching or being near an active volcano.
