Krayon, Rising Star in Independent Watchmaking, Debuts at Stephen Silver
The unveiling of Rémi Maillat’s stunning “Everywhere” watch in 2017 was one of those rare and exquisite moments in watchmaking: the emergence of a major new talent. Maillat, an engineer with a gift for translating mathematical equations into mechanical parts, had reconceived the traditional sunrise/sunset complication, making it—for the first time ever—adjustable, and operable through the crown. In just a few short years Maillat and his company Krayon has captured prizes and acclaim, and beginning this month, will offer their creations at Stephen Silver Fine Jewelry.
Everywhere is a highly complicated wristwatch, with nearly 600 components that enable the wearer to dial in his latitude and longitude, GMT time, local time and date—all the elements needed to calculate sunrise and sunset times. As a follow up to this magnum opus, Krayon has released “Anywhere,” a simpler, more graphic version of the complication that is set by a watchmaker to a specific location, but based on a similar mechanism. Anywhere showcases Krayon’s other outstanding quality, its deft hand with aesthetics. Sunrise and sunset times on Anywhere are presented by moveable discs on the periphery of the dial and a moving sun, creating a day/night indicator that changes with the seasons. Differing colors and treatments, including dials decorated with artistic handcrafts have opened realms of aesthetic possibilities for this model, which is now the mainstay of the brand.
Anywhere also boasts a highly finished movement, which places the innovative system of yokes and racks at center stage. Traditionally, sunrise and sunset times are calculated with a cam that must be specifically manufactured for a fixed location. Maillat’s system is movable, and even on the Anywhere model, can be altered by a Krayon watchmaker for a new location.
As a new, small independent manufacturer, Krayon’s production is highly limited, and interested collectors should be prepared to wait several months while their watch is being built.
Prototypes will be on display at the Stephen Silver boutique in Menlo Park, California, and we encourage you to come in to discuss the possibilities. Contact us for more details.