ARRESTING SHAPES

Is the circle a necessity of mechanics or just a habit of history? From the “glimpse of the future” offered by 1950s asymmetry to the conservatism of the post-Quartz era, we trace the struggle between ergonomic logic and the desire for wearable sculptures

- WORDS JOSH SIMS

Martin Frei suggests we all take a long, hard look at the cuckoo clock.

Far from Harry Lime's dismissal of the object in The Third Man, Frei – co-founder of artsy and often asymmetric watch brand Urwerk - notes how it is indicative that just because a clock dial may be round, the surround certainly does not have to be. And so with watches.

"Of course, the most obvious reason that most watches are round is because the movement is likely to be round and the hands make a circular motion. It's logical," he concedes. That the outer edge of the case – the circumference – is, naturally, at all points equidistant from the centre makes for a builtin sense of balance too; there's a reason why the circle has been privileged throughout humanity's existence. Round is also ergonomic - it sits on the wrist; it does not catch on your clothing; it is easier to create a tighter seal to give some water-resistance. But these are mostly historic reasons.

"And the fact is that the watch Industry has to keep finding ways to explore the aesthetics of the watch – its form, its time display - to keep it interesting and desirable, or [since nobody needs a watch] eventually the whole business will stop," Frei contends.

It has, he suggests, become somewhat captured by the dominant idea of the watch as essentially functional and toollike, echoing the invariably round forms of automotive instrument panels. And he is not wrong - by one estimate 90% of all watches are round. The paradox, as the watch designer Eric Giroud sees it? "That it's moving away from the round that tends to create distinctive points of reference for the rest of the industry - a new rectangular watch, for example, is 'just like a Reverso. That suggests there's an opportunity there - and more brands are now asking me for non-round forms."