Independence The Art of Horology...a visit to the store in Hong Kong.

March of the Independents

It is no secret that I am an ardent admirer of independent watchmakers. I was one of the first to invest in Philippe Dufour, by purchasing and writing about him. As early as 1999, I wrote an early article which appeared in The Business Times Supplement in Singapore on Philippe and his endeavours.

And I make it a point to always spend as much time as I can at the ACHI booth at BaselWorld when I attended the Basel event.

Independence - The Art of Horology

So it is with GREAT pleasure for me to introduce a store, totally independent itself from any large retailers, to be totally dedicated to promoting the works of the independents.



I understand from the owner that the store is designed to be non-profit. Interesting, methots. Operated more like an art gallery than a traditional watch store.



It is a rather small, but not tiny, store tucked away at the third floor of a building in Pedder Street, where Shanghai Tang used to be. But beautifully decorated...not only with the traditional decor elements, but also with a very good collection of antiquities...like this escapement model, made of steel, and at least a hundred years old.



But also, a nice collection of books and old drawings. Ahem...also a copy of my book - A. Lange & Sohne: The Pour le Merite Collection.

A nice inner lounge where customers can relax, and view the watches in comfort.



The independents they currently represent are Philippe Dufour, Romain Gautier, Ludovic Ballouard, Roger Smith, Kari Voutilainen, amongst others. As is typical of independents, when I was there, they did not have much stock to show. The owner's personal Dufour Simplicity graced one showcase, while another showcase hilighted Roger Smith's masterpiece. But they had stock of Romain Gautier and Ludovic Ballouard.

Shown here is the Romain Gautier made especially for the opening of the store.



Side by side with the regular production watch, the piece unique for Independence features an open work case:



And a blackened bridge treatment, using grey gold (as I understand it)



A closer look at the regular production Romain, showing the exquisite finish:



and the Ludovic which was there...quite an interesting movement



Worth a visit when you are in Hong Kong...also, right next door is the beautiful gentlemen's clothing store: The Armoury. Drop by also to have a look and perhaps purchase the beautiful products...from Drake ties to shoes from Carmina, Gaziano Girling and St. Crispins. All wonderful brands. To bespoke suits et al.

I am supporting the Independence effort in my own way. I will be doing a solo exhibition of my portrait prints of the independent watchmakers in the store. Timing to be confirmed.

Independence - The Art of Horology
307 Pedder Building (3rd Floor)
12 Pedder Street
Central, Hong Kong


Photonote: All photographed hand held, under store lighting conditions.

Hong Kong skyline: view from Kowloon

The Hongk Kong skyline...of the central business districts of Central and Wanchai from Tsim Tsa Tsui in Kowloon is certainly one of the most beautiful in the world.

It is highly accessable from the Kowloon side...an esplanade, leading from the Star Ferry Terminal in TST to the Avenue of the Stars provide an excellent vantage point for photographers to try and capture the beauty. And at precisely 8pm every night, the skyline's lights are coordinated in a dance to music. The music can be heard on the airwaves on FM radio, and the spectacle of lights and lasers accompany.

The vantage point in Kowloon is about 1.5km from the main lights, so many lens options will work. Here I have a two panel stitch, shot about 8pm, taking in the Central area



Taken on another day, but earlier, just as the sun was setting at about 6:30pm, a multipanel stitch, covering the area from Causeway Bay to the Wanchai Hong Kong Convention Center to the Central area:



The shots were taken with the HC 50-110 zoom, set at 80mm. My pano rail is just slightly short of the being able to rotate the lens at its entrance pupil, hence you see the slight distortion on the left side of the photograph, as parallax error causes CS4 to see the waterline as slightly curved.

Detail of the IFC tower:



Photographed just beside the Star Ferry terminal at TST, I used the zoom at 110mm setting, with a slight tilt up to cover the building. When viewed at full resolution, the detail captured is quite amazing. I can almost see the people working in the building through the IFC's windows.

Hong Kong: 1881 Heritage Building

Apologies, I am getting behind on blogging...was in Hong Kong, now trying to catch up.

In the meantime, here is a two shot stitch with the HCD28 of the new 1881 Heritage Building which used to house the Marine Police Headquarters during the British Colonial days:



More later.

Hong Kong: A short series

Shot with a Mamiya 7 II with 43mm lens. This is a truly superb rangefinder camera. Shooting 6x7 film. Scanned with a Hasselblad 343 drum scanner. I didn't do much touch up on the scratches to the film. These appear as white dots, or scratch lines on the film, and is quite common, especially when not stored properly.

Both camera, lens and scanner have amazing resolution and colour fidelity.

Shot from a flat up 28 storeys in Hung Hom.



The DOF of the 43mm lens is amazing. And the depth of detail is very high.

Same camera, lens. Outside the Peninsula Hotel:



Inside, using Kodak Tri-Pan X black and white film for a grainy period look.



Same setup outside the IFC, across the border