This concrete watch draws design inspiration from WWI’s vintage timepieces & urban architecture

Posted on 10/12/2020 by Ruchi Thukral

If you visit Taiwan, you’ll find that most of the architecture is built using cement. Then in 2006 the founder of Taiwan-based 22 Design Studio saw Japan’s exquisite, cast-in-place concrete architecture and realized that the material had potential to be moulded creatively and could be used in product design as well. So, 22 Design Studio launched a series of rings and stationary inspired by urban architecture and the latest addition to that range is their Concrete Sector watch!

This minimal watch is also inspired by architecture and urban life, to put it in the studio’s own words, “It is a metropolitan watch designed for urban residents, emphasizing the perfect balance of design, craftsmanship and practicality.” The Concrete Sector watch also draws elements from the battlefields of WWI, specifically the trench watch design which was introduced to be a convenient alternative to the pocket watch the soldiers were carrying. Like their other concrete items, this watch is also crafted using 22 Design Studio’s exclusive concrete curing process which gives it that unique brutalist aesthetic. The technique used is called ‘béton brut’ where the concrete is left unfinished after being cast and this showcases the patterns and seams imprinted on it by the formwork.

The dial’s structured 3D grooves are cut into radial 12 and 60 equal parts. The shadow caused by the cutting is used as the time scale to accurately indicate every minute and second. The concrete grid rises slightly in the “22nd” minute as a slight nod to the studio’s work. The Concrete Sector watch features Swiss Sellita SW200-1 automatic winding movement with a power reserve of 38 hours and comes in a 316L medical grade stainless steel case. It is also water resistant up to 50 meters, scratch-resistant and has an anti-reflective sapphire glass. The sandwich structure is also coated with Super-LumiNova which makes it easy to read time in day and night. This handmade timepiece has contemporary dial with a vintage soul.

Designer: 22 Design Studio

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Made out of concrete, the Merge Desk Pen wonderfully captures minimal brutalism

Posted on 24/03/2020 by Sarang Sheth

Literally the product of a Boolean Union, the Merge Desk Pen from 22 Design Studio is remarkable for its uniquely simplistic form, as well as the material used to achieve it. Cast out of high-density concrete, the Merge Desk Pen is one of 22 Design Studio’s many experimentations with the material, turning the humble construction powder into something more personal and premium. One could argue its use in the stationery category is especially poetic, considering how concrete and pens are both responsible for building, be it structures or narratives!

The Merge Desk Pen comes in the classic gray concrete finish, as well as an unusually eye-catching bright red hue. The pen docks right into the stand in the same way a quill sits in an inkpot, at a slight tilt, while contrasting a quill’s lightness with a broad, thick grip that’s great to hold and write with – and an overall form that is sure to attract eyes with its minimal brutalist design!

Designer: 22 Design Studio

The Fourth Dimension… in 3D!

Posted on 07/11/2017 by Sarang Sheth

Until now we’ve only looked at time in a two dimensional representation. Hands move around a flat dial, numbers show up on a flat screen. Time is the fourth dimension, but it seems to be trapped in a two dimensional space.

Back in 2015, 22 Design Studio decided to change our perception of time as something 2D, with the 4D watch, a watch with a depth that was physical as well as philosophical. Cast in concrete, the watch dial had steps that ascended from 1 to 12, showing progression or an ascension, rather than a repetitive circular movement. 22 Studio comes back to reinvent that watch. Armed with their ever-expanding knowledge of working with concrete, and a Swiss-made Sellita SW200-1 movement, the 4D Watch gets its timely aesthetic and functional upgrade. Now with a date atrium, a more detailed concrete dial, an automatic movement that comes with a 38 hour reserve, encased in the same design philosophy that made the original 4D watch such an object of beauty.

Over the years 22 Design Studio has associated themselves very closely with concrete, using them as a standout material for all their products, because concrete has the reputation of being a builder’s material. Concrete creates societies, builds homes, and civilizations. No other material has been given this status, and 22 Design Studio’s products wear it almost as a badge of honor. The 4D Concrete Watch Automatic’s concrete watch face explores more intricate details, never before seen in concrete. Encased in a brass casing that patinas as it ages, the watch celebrates the passing of time, turning time itself into a design detail too. On the back, to balance the impressive nature of the concrete dial is the exhibition window that allows you to view the Swiss movement in its magical glory.

Each watch comes with a sapphire glass casing, and a date atrium (an addition in this series) that gives a magnified, magnificent window into the date. The atrium itself comes with a metal pipe casing that echoes the watch’s body. The two metallic rings complement each other, and also the Italian leather watch strap, which combined, hold together a watch that celebrates not just the fourth dimension, but all four dimensions!

Designer: Sean Yu of 22 Design Studio

Click here to BUY NOW: $685.00 ~~$760.00~~

The Signature Edition Stainless Steel

The Signature Edition Brass

Exclusive Shadow Edition

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A Watch that Connects Time and Space

Posted on 22/10/2015 by Troy Turner

The 4th Dimension Watch was born from a fascination with contemporary architecture and design, as well as the progression of the MollaSpace brand’s product development (concrete accessories and writing tools). Time converges with space into our physical world through, what is known in Physics as, the 4th Dimension, which sparked the idea of binding time into this beautiful and solid timepiece.

The spiral staircase immediately stands out as a visual connecting point between 2 separate dimensions. With each stair turned at a 30° angle, you can align 12 steps together, each representing an hour, to form a complete Escher-like cycle. Serving as a break in between spaces, the stairs present an opportunity to pause between time and space. Rather than rush from place to place, the stairs serve as a subconscious reminder to stop and smell the roses in-between!

Designer: 22 Design Studio