Certain youth experiences leave such a profound impression in our character that they change us. We can look back and see a before and after in our lives. Some of these unforgettable mental images might even awaken a special fascination that will forever be with us. Be part of us.
My father was a train driver and, when I was 16, he allowed me to drive a fully loaded cargo train across the Bosnian mountainous landscape. The hypnotic noise of the engine, the vibration of the cabin, the smell of the smoke and the feeling of taming the largest machine I had ever seen, made an everlasting impression.
My love for the mechanics was born.
At some point during life, we abandon our dreams and become one anonymous cog in the large wheel life. And yet that desire still remains with in each one of us: to create something unforgettable.
They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. If that is case, the watch and clock-making industry must be the most charming in the world.
My older brother had a Vespa and my father had a bicycle from the Second World War, both of which I would take apart before winter to protect them from the freezing temperatures. Once spring arrived, I would put the motorcycle and the bicycle back together and serviced them. In times of scarcity, it was normal to perform this ritual with love and care.
I grew up dreaming of, one day, owning a 1950 BMW motorcycle, just like my neighbour’s. The “Tack-tack” noise made by the engine once we resurrected it in springtime was music to my ears and it is burnt in my memory.
This “Tack-tack” rhythm, which I still hear when I close my eyes, drove me to create TIMEBURNER.
Just like an engine transforms chemical energy (petrol) into mechanical energy (movement); TIMEBURNER converts the owner’s ignition and winding of the spark plug (crown) into mechanical movement and drives the piston along a non-linear time scale. This piston replaces the hands in the role of telling the time.
In the 19th century, the internal combustion engine revolutionised the world. TIMEBURNER is my horological interpretation of this paradigm change.
To make this ambitious project a reality, I have collaborated with Marc Jenni, fellow AHCI member and wristwatch expert. Combining my sense of design to Marc’s wristwatch construction expertise, we have created a wristwatch like no other.
TIMEBURNER is a nostalgic tribute to the earliest internal combustion engines. A salute to noise, grease and chrome. And a testimony to the men and women that created and tamed them.
I am certain that the owner of TIMEBURNER will discover his own, individual association to the “Tack-tack” when he indulges in his own memories …
SILVERLIGHT ME1
Energetic, incorruptible, selfless, intuitive, passionate, charming, romantic.
CHROME-RIDER ME2
Impulsive, adventurous, courageous, daring, decisive, stubborn, self-sufficient.
ALL-BLACK ME3
Dark, unrestrained, irreverent, contradictory, uncompromising, hedonistic, provocative.
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