Synonymous with passion, quality, and vision – any connoisseur will tell you precision and timing can be everything. That’s why after years in the making, the collaboration between Timex & MadeWorn had to be just the right fit.
Every detail – down to the watch’s most intimate aspects, presentation, and very soul was thoroughly mused over and considered until each part fell into place, revealing its true opus.
But how did we arrive here?
MadeWorn is helmed by Blaine Halvorson, an LA-based artist who runs his brand with an eye to decades (and centuries) past and a penchant for hands-on manipulation of materials. Timex, of course, came to the table with more than 165 years of watchmaking heritage and global influences on design, manufacturing, and production, all while under the creative design direction of Giorgio Galli, one of the most influential watch designers of his time.
The sum of these parts, which might seem like oil and water from first glance, is a blend like no other. The watches in this collection tick like a Timex and wear like the singular objects of artistic passion that they really are.
On the Timex side, this MadeWorn edition began its life under the American Documents® collection which made its debut in April 2019, when Timex brought watchmaking back to the USA. A natural fit for MadeWorn, staying true to both brands DNA and mission for American-Made products. Keeping true to the original, this unique but limited edition was made by American craftsmen with American materials, each raw piece that was produced in the US was then shipped to Blaine out in LA for his hands-on approach (really his blood, sweat and tears) to ensure that each component was uniquely crafted. From LA the pieces went back to the Timex HQ in Middlebury, CT where our engineering team lead by Dave Quinlan continued that very mission.
But with one look at a MadeWorn watch, you know something diverged somewhere. And for Halvorson, Galli and Quinlan, finding the way to something as wonderful as the Timex x MadeWorn watch is all about process.
For these watches, it’s about many processes separated out and repeated through time. The watch cases are coated with a proprietary plating, and then physically tumbled and distressed to show intentional wear; a similar process was applied to the case back, but separately, with multiple layers of plating applied and then partially worn away through hand-distressing methods. For each individual watch, a special coating was then applied overtop of the worn plating layers to preserve what Timex and MadeWorn achieved together.
Each strap also tells a story of wear, aging and manipulation; soaked in tannin-based dyes and dried with direct-sun exposure, among other methods, the end result is a softened leather strap that’s still sturdy, but definitively broken-in and rich with deep, earthy hues. Years of exposure to sun, sweat and other elements of daily life were compressed into weeks, days and even hours as Halvorson and Quinlan created these watches, assembling parts by hand and navigating each process with a combination of the engineer’s scientific know-how and the artist’s gut instinct.
Of course, the most immediately striking aspect of this watch is its dial. Split into two hemispheres — left brain and right brain, day and night, illusion and reality — it reflects a process that involved basic and acidic compounds, as well as applications of blistering heat and powerful light. With this visual Halvorson evokes the horizon we’re always chasing, as well as the setting sun that we’re trying to beat.
What can we do with the 24 hours we’re given? In Blaine’s own words, “we cannot attempt to cheat time, but we can change how we use and represent it. Will we fall victim to these 24 hours — or choose to conquer them? “
A watch with this much care and passion put into it will, of course, be presented in a setting that warrants such weight. Each watch comes in a box made of American cherrywood and charred by hand, with a sheaf of papers inspired by (and treated to look like) banking and business documents from a century ago, as if rescued from the drawer of an antique desk.
Hand-assembled by American craftspeople and built with materials and parts sourced in the USA, this watch is more than a time-telling device. Every element of its design, from the case and hands to the special dial patina, is completely unique — no two Timex x MadeWorn watches are the same. This collaborative project represents Halvorson’s vision of time: the future to come, the past already gone, and our position straddling the present’s divide as the clock strikes now, now, now.
The true essence and soul of this collaboration could only be captured by renowned film-maker and photographer Dikayl Rimmasch. Each image and video produced tells this unique story but leaves room for personal reflection and thoughtful curiosity.
Discover Timex x MadeWorn here.
Product Features:
- Stainless-Steel Case with Aging Process
- Two-Color Dial with Aging Process
- Natural Leather Strap with Aging Process
- Brass Case Back with Custom Plating that was Made to Look Like Aged Aluminum
- Water Resistant to 30M
- 41mm case, 20mm lug
PRICE & AVAILABILITY
- SRP: $850
- June 15, 2021
- Available exclusively on Timex.com
What’s next between Timex and MadeWorn, will we fall victim to these 24 hours – or choose to conquer them…Tick Tick Tick…Check back in 2022.
