Generally, I enjoy a great biography/ autobiography. In particular, I have focused on movie stars of the silver screen. At university, I shocked my art tutors by opting to write my dissertation about Cary Grant rather than a contemporary illustrator. Incredibly Cary Grant (born Archie Leach) left Bristol, England as an illiterate working-class 14-year old to become the epitome of style and panache. As far as I’m aware nobody else in movie history has achieved this trick. In the 1940s these stars would wear small dressy gold watches with tailored suits. This inspired me to write a book entitled ‘Modern Dress Watches’. However, in the digital era viewers have a penchant for CGI enhanced action films with larger than life heroes. These protagonists might favour something a bit bolder like the UR-112 Aggregat Odyssey from Urwerk.
It’s always a special occasion when brands like Urwerk release new models. Unfortunately, most people will never get the chance to see these creations first-hand. Ultimately this is down to the limited availability and exceptionally high price point. In fact, if you wanted to purchase the UR-112 Aggregat Odyssey it would set you back CHF 250,000 (approximately $265,000). In light of the current world economic climate and the war in Ukraine, these types of novelties might not be front and centre to most people. However, from a design and engineering point of view, this timepiece is extraordinary.
I’ve always been a huge fan of Urwerk and feel they create some of the best-looking watches on the market. Therefore I was delighted to receive a press release for the UR-112 Aggregat Odyssey. Dimensionally the timepiece has a well-proportioned titanium/stainless steel case measuring 51mm x 42mm x 16mm. This should appeal to devotees of the brand as the scale is consistent with many of their other pieces. It’s doubtful if you would wear this watch to a gala ball but it would look cool with casual attire.
I could wax lyrical for hours about all the technical nuances of the UR-112 Aggregat Odyssey. For example, this piece has an impressive list of features such as: jumping digital hours, trailing digital minutes (on satellite prisms) silicon digital seconds and power-reserve indication. However, most collectors who are privileged enough to afford this watch are simply buying into a design philosophy. Urwerk has become a world-famous horological artist who creates fantastically complicated futuristic watches. That is why they can demand such high prices for their sensational timepieces.
