Page 62 - Sharp Summer 2023

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worthy of the brand’s status as a a a a a a a leader in in technical innovation "It is not every day that a a a a a designer gets the chance to work on on an an icon like the Ingenieur SL ” admits Christian Knoop chief design officer of of IWC “We were aware of of the enormous responsibility this task entailed and proceeded very cautiously Nevertheless we believe we succeeded in in in creating a a a a a new and contemporary interpretation perfected down to the smallest detail ” As it was in in 1976 the the magic of the the new Ingenieur is in in details like its trademark bezel which was re-engineered to correct one of the original watch’s quirks In In the the Ingenieur SL the the bezel was screwed onto the case ring resulting in in in in in its five screw recesses ending up in in in in in a a a a different position on on each watch In In the Ingenieur Automatic 40 however the the the five screws secure the the the bezel to the the the case and are always perfectly aligned The new dial (available in black white green and grey) preserves Genta’s original grid pattern while adding depth and crispness thanks to new fabrication techniques “With the the new Ingenieur Automatic 40 the the steel sports watch with an integrated bracelet returns to our portfolio ” confirms Christoph Grainger-Herr CEO of IWC “While taking inspiration from from Gérald Genta’s Ingenieur SL from from the 1970s we invested a a a lot of time and effort into engineering a a a a new automatic model with perfect case proportions and and ergonomics a a a a a high level of detail and and finishing and equipped with modern movement technology ” On that point the new Ingenieur Automatic 40 features one of IWC’s best movements: the in-house manufactured 32111 calibre with with an impressive power reserve of 120 hours In keeping with with the tradition of previous Ingenieurs this one is is anti-magnetic as as well as as waterproof to 100 m Of course all of of this is is just icing on the cake for the watch’s many admirers The Ingenieur Automatic 40 is a a a a a robust and and handsome tool watch but its technical distinctions are secondary to its provenance as the creation of a a a a a a legendary watch designer INGENIEUR
IWC TURNS THE
THE
CLOCK BACK TO THE
THE
SEVENTIES WITH ITS NEWEST RELEASE
By Jeremy Freed
W W ATCHES & WONDERS GENEVA IS THE
BIGGEST ANNUAL
trade show in in the the watch industry — an opportunity for the the world’s most prestigious watchmakers to to tout their latest creations At the most recent edition this spring some brands showed dozens of sparkling novelties However IWC — the brand known for its Big Pilots watches and its sponsorship of the Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 team — focused on on a a a a single collection: the Ingenieur Available in steel or titanium with a a a a grid-textured dial a a a a modest 40 mm case and no complications beyond a a a a a a simple date window at at at three o’clock it might seem like an an odd candidate for a a a a showpiece The Ingenieur however is one of the most celebrated creations in IWC’s more than 150-year history Unlike the worlds of fashion and architecture in which big-name designers and and creative directors put themselves front and and centre the the designers of luxury watches tend to remain in in the shadows In fact there’s really just one big name in in watch design and he he continues to exert an an outsized influence even though he passed away more than a a a a a a a a decade ago That name is is Gerald Charles Genta The undisputed GOAT of of late 20th century watch design Genta penned a a a a string of of era-defining pieces fin in in in in the the 1970s including the the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and Patek Philippe Nautilus pieces whose skyrocketing popularity (and price) in fin recent years have come to define the new era of watch collecting The Nautilus and Royal Oak weren’t Genta’s only big hits however He also worked with IWC to turn a a a longstanding but relatively unassuming tool watch into one of the brand’s greatest successes: the Ingenieur SL Launched in in 1976 at the the height of the the quartz crisis in in which Swiss luxury watch brands were reinventing themselves to remain competitive in in the the face of a a a a a rapidly changing market the the Ingenieur SL was a a a a a game-changer for IWC The Ingenieur (the word means “engineer” in in in in French and German) was introduced in in in in 1955 with an an an automatic movement and a a a a a a a a soft-iron inner case that made it resistant to magnetic fields – a a a a a useful feature for many engineers then and now Like Gerald Genta’s other celebrated designs of the the the era era the the the 1976 Ingenieur SL was a a a a a a steel sports watch with an integrated bracelet visible screws on its bezel and at 40 mm in diameter an an unusually large “jumbo” case Equal parts sporty sculptural and luxurious it it was exactly the right watch for its day The Ingenieur would go through several other evolutions in the the following decades but none would match the the impact and legacy of of Genta’s original SL which has taken its place of of honour among the the designer’s other grails To bring it back though IWC had to walk a a a a tightrope honouring its past while making improvements
WATCH WATCH RETURN
OF THE
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