A COLLABORATION BETWEEN HORAGE & ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART, MA DESIGN PRODUCTS
Behind every iconic watch is a designer and under the hood of every watch is a movement.
As the new face of Swiss independent movement making, we are tackling our second automatic movement named K2. In doing so we're inviting the next generation of Royal College of Art designers to take part in a watch design competition.
Aside from designing a watch its an opportunity for students to leave their mark on the Swiss watchmaking industry.
THE K2 MOVEMENT A modern mechanical watch is so much more than a simple reference of time. The watches of today and tomorrow are keepsakes that serve as reminders to pivotal moments in our lives. Today our busy lives demand comfortable, precise and aesthetically pleasing elements with time keeping viewed as a secondary function. Whether it be the past, present or future we are looking to Royal College of Art students to take part in the design of a low profile, everyday wear timepiece.
At just 2.9mm, K2 is an ultra thin mechanical micro-rotor movement with a big power reserve and modular design to accommodate a number of functions. Such movement projects are rare given they take upwards of 7 years to come to fruition. The next stage in K2’s development is watch design and Horage is looking to the designers of tomorrow.
“OUR INDUSTRIAL DESIGNER YULIN CHEN IS A GRADUATE OF RCA AND TODAY WE LOOK TO OFFER THE NEXT GENERATION OF PRODUCT DESIGNERS THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHAPE THE FACE OF HORAGE.”
Horage co-founder and product design lead Tzuyu Huang.
THE CHALLENGE Simplicity is an incredibly difficult design attribute to master and this is the challenge we are inviting current RCA MA Design Products students and recent graduates to take part in.
To begin with we are asking students to let their creative minds take the lead and to be free spirited with their design. In the second phase we will work with participants to help shape their vision into the movement specs of K2.
For one lucky designer a limited edition production model timepiece will be produced. An additional challenge for students is understanding Horage’s DNA and incorporating Horage design cues to ensure the finished watch resonates with the brands product lineage.
Horage together with our engineering team at THE Plus will be opening the doors to participating students and enabling those taking part to join in on design, engineering and production workshops.
“IT’S NOT EVERYDAY THAT STUDENTS HAVE BEHIND THE SCENES ACCESS TO A SWISS MANUFACTURER.
A BIG UPSIDE FOR STUDENTS IS THE ABILITY TO DIRECTLY INTERACT WITH FOUNDERS, ENGINEERS AND INDUSTRIAL DESIGNERS AND GAIN TRUE INSIGHTS ON THE FEASIBILITY OF THEIR DESIGNS IN THE REAL WORLD.” Dr. Robert Phillips RCA
“WE WANT TO ENSURE STUDENTS GET A REAL WORLD VIEW OF WHAT THE FUTURE OF PRODUCT MANUFACTURING CAN LOOK LIKE.
OUR TEAM OF ENGINEERS, WATCHMAKERS AND STRATEGISTS ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO OPENING OUR DOORS TO THE RCA.” Horage co-founder and IP strategist Andreas Felsl
THE TIMELINE The kickoff date is November 21st 2020 and students that are interested will be provided with relevant support materials to ensure they can submit their designs before the deadline of January 12th 2021.
A shortlist of winners is to be announced in mid January 2021 with technical development workshops starting shortly after. In the technical development workshops students will be able to work directly with the Horage team to fine tune their designs.
In May 2021 the students final design will be presented globally and the Horage and global watch community will vote on the RCA design that will go into production. The winning design will be presented as a limited edition, pre-order timepiece and will be delivered in the 4th quarter of 2022.
“FROM A MARKETING STANDPOINT I BELIEVE THIS TIMELINE WILL HELP STUDENTS HAVE A GREATER APPRECIATION OF THE TIME NEEDED TO BRING SOPHISTICATED MECHANICAL PRODUCTS TO MARKET.” Landon Stirling - Horage marketing director
ABOUT ROYAL COLLEGE OF ART Founded in 1837 the Royal College of Art is the only entirely postgraduate art and design university in the United Kingdom. In 2020, the RCA was placed first in the art and design subject area in the QS World University Rankings for the sixth year in a row, with an overall score of 98.9/100. The RCA has an impressive list of alumni that have made a notable impact in all countless fields across all corners of the globe.
Comments