Silver Watch Design · 2024
Makina Andras I Watch
- A' Design Award 2024 Silver Winner in Watch Design
- Awarded April 15, 2024
- CLIENT: Makina Watches
- Estimated Number of Design Views: 136,740
- Verification code E3542D3F10 · Verify this award
About Makina Andras I Watch
Makina Watches wanted to design a black sheep in the rectangular watch category that's already full of art deco inspired dress watches. That's why Andras I was born as a sports watch with a bolder and more modern approach. Coated in stealth black, its stainless steel case is composed of slopes and angular shapes that make up its multifaceted design. Its octagonal case is designed to taper around a larger movement for less volume and increased wearability. Its dial is multi-layered and 3 dimensional and its strap is muscular and shapely to look more imposing from every angle.
Within the contemporary landscape of horological design, the Makina Andras I Watch by Danilo Villanueva & Makina & Co emerges as a compelling meditation on geometric tension and material restraint, embodying principles that trace lineage through twentieth-century industrial design movements while asserting distinctly contemporary sensibilities. The timepiece demonstrates sophisticated understanding of form language, deploying a rectangular case that establishes architectural authority while housing circular dial elements that introduce dynamic visual conversation between orthogonal and curvilinear geometries. This fundamental tension, resolved through careful proportional calibration, suggests engagement with design philosophies that valued the integration of functional necessity with aesthetic refinement. The chromatic strategy evidences remarkable discipline, restricting the palette to achromatic tones punctuated solely by cerulean blue hand accents, this selective color deployment functioning simultaneously as functional enhancement for legibility and as expressive gesture introducing vitality within restraint. Technical accomplishment reveals itself in the precision of applied indices, the smooth integration of case and strap, and the refined surface treatments that differentiate matte and polished passages. The subsidiary seconds register at six o'clock introduces compositional asymmetry that activates the lower dial zone while maintaining overall visual balance through its centered horizontal positioning. Material choices demonstrate understanding of tactile experience, the rigid steel case meeting the supple rubber strap in a transition that honors both durability requirements and wearing comfort. One might observe how the design navigates between masculine assertiveness and refined sophistication, avoiding aggressive styling while maintaining confident presence. The work invites consideration of how contemporary objects can honor functional imperatives while achieving aesthetic distinction, prompting viewers to contemplate the relationship between precision engineering and expressive design in objects intended for daily use.
Press Kit
- Unique Properties
- The idea was to design a black sheep in the rectangular watch category full of art deco inspired dress watches. That's why our first rectangular watch is as a sports watch designed to be bolder, more modern and striking from every angle. Coated in stealth black, its 316L stainless steel case is composed of angular shapes that make up its multifaceted design. Its dial is 3 dimensional with a sand blasted finish. Its strap is muscular and shapely, echoing its chiseled case and layered dial.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Its octagonal shape is purposefully designed to taper around a larger circular movement lowering its overall volume and keeping the case size down to wearable dimensions at 33mm wide, 44mm lug to lug, and only 10.5mm thick. The strap is made of silicone rubber and has air pockets on the backside providing higher comfort when worn during intense sports activities and warmer conditions measuring at 22mm (lugs) tapering to 20mm (buckle). The movement is Sellita SW260 with a 38 hr power reserve.
- Tags
- Makina watches, filipino watch brand, timepiece, microbrand, rectangular watch, Philippines watch brand,
- Production Technology
- It has a PVD coated surgical grade 316L stainless steel case sculpted by CNC machinery with hand-polished and-hand brushed textures for a more robust and premium finish. The dial is layered, made of brass with a sand blasted finish and is hand-assembled. The scratch resistant sapphire crystal glass is coated with 3x Anti-reflective coating. It’s powered by a movement found in many luxury timepieces, SW 260, marrying thoughtful design and premium components at an affordable price of USD 725.
- Design Challenge
- Customers have been asking for size variety and models with smaller dimensions. We kept this in mind when designing Andras I. The challenge was designing a rectangular watch around only a few reputable movements that were available in the market and that we’re willing to use. This is why we gave the case an octagonal shape so that it could taper around a fairly large 25.6mm movement, giving it less volume, less surface area and a thickness of only 10.5mm for higher wearability.
- Project Duration
- Andras I took one year to complete from conceptualization in September 2022. A prototype that we were happy with was marketed for pre-orders in May 2023. And the production model was released in September 2023.
- Operation Flow
- Andras I was meant to be simple in functionality (hours, minutes and seconds only) because our intent was to give the three-handed rectangular segment something different. The minutes and seconds markers are crisp and painted white and the hands are painted blue, all of which are decisions that contribute to high legibility under all lighting environments. The crown is consistent with crowns in our other models and is ownable to the brand; it is simple and yet it has grip and is easy to use.
- Research
- As with all our models, we needed to make sure that our case design for Andras I will bring something new to the industry. Our origami inspired case was the clear winner after several design explorations. We looked at both traditional and abstract forms of the art and explored origami inspired architecture to see how we can incorporate our findings into Andras I in a way that is minimal, modern, and will not alienate watch purists who are often conventional and very difficult to please.
- Inspiration
- Since most watches in the rectangular watch category are flat art deco inspired watches, we wanted to create a watch that is more modern and photogenic from all angles. Hence, one of our sources for inspiration when designing Andras I was origami. We fell in love with the art’s crisp lines and the geometric shapes that form 3 dimensional, multifaceted surfaces. While the case’s robustness comes from its solid, quality materials and finish, its elegant design is originally born from origami. The results were favorable to the brand with Andras I's design gaining international recognition from news, watch expert and design publications like Designboom, Time and Tide Watches, Watchpro, Oracle Time, and The Manila Times just to name a few.
- Image Credits
- Image #1: Photographer, Danilo Villanueva, Andras_I, 2023.
Image #2: Photographer, Danilo Villanueva, Andras_I, 2023.
Image #3: Photographer, Danilo Villanueva, Andras_I, 2023.
Image #4: Photographer, Danilo Villanueva, Andras_I, 2023.
Image #5: Photographer, Danilo Villanueva, Andras_I, 2023.
Colors of Makina Andras I Watch
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G0E26 ShopDesign Interview about Makina Andras I Watch
To push the three-handed rectangular watch category with the limited production and budgetary resources available to us.
We wanted to design the black sheep in the three-handed rectangular watch category.
To keep this design as a one off. It will be sold out in one month or so. After that, Andras will very much likely return but not exactly the same way as its original iteration.
1 year from concept to finished prototype
This design is purely Makina's.
The intent was to produce and sell under Makina Watches
We did not have a rectangular watch in our product portfolio, hence the steps taken to design Andras for Makina.
Watch enthusiasts and those who have an eccentric taste for watch collecting.
Its multifaceted design from case to dial.
Makina Watches' naming convention for its models is based on names of angels and demons. Although Andras is a demon name, the design is unrelated to its name like all of Makina's models.
Illustrator, Photoshop, Autocad, Fusion 360
The multifaceted case design PVD coated in intense black.
We worked with our own engineers to realize this design.
Honestly, if Makina's main goals were to follow trends and to sell as many watches to our target as much as possible, then we would have conducted extensive research. But that is not Makina's goals at all. Our goal is simply to put out there the best looking timepieces we possibly can with our very limited resources and attract likeminded watch collectors.
The balance between conventional and unconventional thinking. The challenge is pushing the category to a place where it would not put off watch purists who are generally traditionalists.
This is the most contemporary design to come out of Makina Watches. It has the attributes that make it appealing for a lot of industrial designers and jury members. We decided to make this model our first entry to award organizations for reasons mentioned.
Like mentioned before, this is something unique to come out of the brand. What we've learned is that Andras is the beginning of a new chapter for Makina. All our models would have to live up to this new standard achieved with this model and nothing less.
Grand Interview about Makina Andras I Watch
We were looking at ways of creating a distinct look for our first rectangular mechanical watch. Although iconic and beautiful, most famous rectangular watches out there are simplistic and flat in nature. We wanted ours to be more multifaceted in architecture. Origami's folds and triangulated shapes helped us decide where to put lines and facets on our case design to really achieve a more 3-dimensional form when observed from all angles.
Makina as a watch brand does not release watch models that are homages or purely based on traditional watches. Makina creates models that aim to be a lot more on the modern side of things pushing what already exists in the industry as much as possible within very limited resources. And so a lot of thinking is involved before we even put pen to paper to be able to get something we can green light our workshop to prototype.
The octagonal design solution for the case helps in being able to house a larger movement and keep Andras I to wearable dimensions. If it were less octagonal in nature, it would make Andras_I look too large and bulky. Although invisible on the outside, the interior makings of the case is unconventional in nature because of an additional step layer that serves to hold Andras I's top dial layer. Without this, The dial wouldn't have as much depth as it currently has now.
Although, we would have loved to have water resistance up to 100m, we opted for 50m water resistance instead. This was more of a design decision to keep Andras I down to a slimmer dimension. 50m water resistance is sufficient water proofing and is enough for light swimming. For the model's first iteration, it was more important for us in defining an aesthetic for Andras I allowing us to improve more on functionality like water resistance in future iterations.
As you mentioned, the stealth black appearance is done through a PVD coating process that helps further strengthen Andras I's surgical grade stainless steel case. Honestly, we don't really design based on what is in current fashion or what a certain demographic would appeal to when launching a new model. We generally only release watches based on what we might be lacking in our brand's portfolio and what we like and feel like releasing hoping that there are other likeminded enthusiasts who appeal to what we do. Thankfully, we have a lot of customers who feel the same way we do for Andras I.
It is really meant for those who would choose to use this watch for active wear, strenuous activities or those who live in warm, humid conditions. The air pockets on the silicone rubber straps allow the wrist to breathe more with more air circulating under it as the wrist moves. It helps reduce perspiration and keep the wrist cool with less discomfort. The difference is very clear when compared to leather or steel bracelets.
Like most of our models, it really is all about the design. Although the majority of watch enthusiasts really do gravitate towards watches that are of traditional in nature, we do opt to really release watches like Andras_I that may make some enthusiasts out there feel a bit uncomfortable due to some of the design decisions we make. To us, it wouldn't really be a new "alternative" if it looked too similar to what is already out there. The combination of Andras_I's stealth black design, overall form, multilayered dial and the treatment of the small seconds, separates it from many.
Sandblasted finishing is usually too raw and too simple for most watch brands and maybe for most watch enthusiasts who look for more sophisticated finishings like sunburst, satin, fumee, enamel, guilloche etc. We wanted the architectural form of the case and depth of the dial to be the heroes in this model. Hence, the decision to go with a simpler finish like a sand blasted dial really helps to not distract from what is important for us in Andras I's execution.
We had to redo the case's prototype and redesign it several times in order to get sharp and crisp lines without compromising comfort. In the end, we got it to a point where the lines are not only crisp but really define where each facet of the case ends and begins. This is evidently possible even in stealth black where usually details as such would be difficult to perceive.
This is the first year we've submitted to international award organizations like A' design Award and have fortunately been a fruitful decision. It has certainly raised the bar for Makina to not only keep watch enthusiasts in mind but to also keep discerning artists and designers in mind when releasing models. We do believe there is merit in trying to please both