SECOND NATURE

Grand Seiko's SLGA025G - High Intensity Titanium 9RA2 Spring Drive 5 Days 'Atera Valley' makes you look deep into the emerald blue waters of the Atera river in the Nagano Prefecture, where the brand's watches are made. We dived straight in for a close look.

- Chitra Lohani Saharan

That Grand Seiko watches display a deep affection for nature is a fairly known fact. Just look at the 'lion's mane' on the dial of the SBGE307, or the 'snowy valley' of SBGJ277, or representation of the night sky above Mt. Iwate on the dial of the Tentagraph. But if you are new to watches, the SLGA025G - High Intensity Titanium 9RA2 Spring Drive 5 Days 'Atera Valley' is a great way to get familiar with the brand. In Japan's Kiso Valley region of the Nagano Prefecture, the six-kilometre long Atera Valley is a sight to behold with the emerald green waters of the Atera river flowing amidst its lush scenery, so clear that you can see the riverbed. This river flows through South of Shiojiri, the location of the Shinshu Watch Studio, where Grand Seiko makes its Spring Drive timepieces.

This emerald green water is the inspiration behind SLGA025G's dial. Featuring a hue called 'Atera Blue, it seeks to do justice to the beauty of the chromatic river it is named after. Looking at the dial of the watch, one is also able to see the delicately scratched texture created by hand using different tools, with each stroke resembling the movement of the water, with the blue-green effect rendering it picture-perfect. Though the brand has not revealed the process of creating the dial, up close one can see how light reflects through the strokes, making the dial come alive. A similar dial was showcased by the brand in early 2024, in the SLGH021 Genbi Valley watch of the Evolution 9 collection, which paid tribute to the emerald-green waters of Genbi Valley's Iwai river that flows through the Iwate Prefecture, where the brand's Studio Shizukuishi is located.