Introducing The SpaceOne x Perpétuel Gallery Jump Hour Limited Edition (Live Pics)

I first met Hamdan Al Hudaidi at Dubai Watch Week last year and even wrote about a Baltic x Perpétuel Gallery chronograph that very week. Al Hudaidi is a passionate collector of independent watchmakers, and while it's not necessarily the core of his work at Perpétuel, he's an ardent supporter of microbrands like Baltic, Excelsior Park, Nivada Grenchen, and others. One of the mainstays of Perpétuel's design language is green hues, a core color in the Middle East and especially important and meaningful in Islam. Their new SpaceOne is no except, with a very interesting green-hued titanium case.

We haven't covered SpaceOne yet, and the watch (and brand) deserve a more in-depth story than what I'm going to give you here. There have been many ups and downs for the brand founded by entrepreneur Guillaume Laidet (of Nivada Grenchen and Vulcain) with collaboration from independent watchmaker Theo Auffret. They had two massive successful Kickstarter after the first was suspended in part due to some naming rights issues and have come out with several variations, but seem to be standing the test of time and have a demand that far outstrips supply. The elephant in the room is that the watch undoubtedly looks a whole hell of a lot like De Bethune's Dream Watch 5 as well, which made it ripe for criticism. 

But the watch has a Soprod automatic movement with a jump hour module designed by the young watchmaking phenom Theo Auffret. Auffret's involvement itself is a bit of extra incentive to look closer, but in that context the price is astounding. SpaceOne watches range from €1,900 to €2,300 for previous treatments, versus CHF 150,000 at the time of the 2014 release of the (more complicated, more refined, more well-finished) Dream Watch 5. But it's part of a wave of new affordable avant-garde releases that have captured my attention lately. This watch, however, is more expensive – about $3,500 USD – for a limited edition, which is common with Perpétuel releases. That said, they all seem to find homes and his customers love supporting him.

In addition to the Soprod movement (with the jump hour visible through a 17mm long aperture) the main selling point is the shape of the watch. it is 51.67mm long with a 42mm lug-to-lug and is 12mm thick. The case is not just titanium but there's some steel and carbon components as well. That makes for a watch that's hard to imagine from a wearability standpoint, but I put a photo a bit further below, showing a different watch with the exact dimensions on the wrist. The size and dimensionality are the whole point, but it's not at all unwearable.

One of the best parts about the green titanium is how much is shifts in the light. While SpaceOne has experimented with blued titanium and even a gradiated treatment that looks like the watch re-entered the atmosphere from orbit, I can't recall a green titanium watch in recent memory. In my pictures, the watch looks a bit more deep and forest-y, but out in the sun, it will wash out a bit and be ever-so-slightly less punchy. As I said, the price is AED 13,000, which is around $3,500 USD, and the new release is limited to 25 pieces.

I shared a lot of thoughts above, to give a bit of context to something we’ve never covered before. I’ve been eyeing a SpaceOne for a while now because I think it’s such a strong design and strong statement to have a hot independent watchmaker team up with a new generation of watch business mogul and provide a more democratic design-forward release. But I’m always skeptical of startup and Kickstarter brands, so it felt about time where SpaceOne had more than earned some words on paper, so to speak. It just so happened that the moment came with the release of a limited edition I saw briefly at Geneva Watch Days.

The brand also just released their second model and I’ll cover that at a future date. The preorder for that model is sold out, which is emblematic of the issue faced by SpaceOne, Ming, and others doing creative horology at lower price points comes with inherent risks that could crush a young brand. I get it. But it can be frustrating. I missed out on what I think was the best design I’ve seen (shown below) because I just didn’t hear about it, so at the very least, I’m telling you about this one so you don’t end up in the same boat. 

Brand: SpaceOne x Perpétuel Gallery
Model: Jump Hour

Diameter: 51.67mm long by x 42mm top to bottom
Thickness: 12.61mm
Case Material: Green stainless steel, titanium, and forged carbon
Dial Color: Jump hour with black dial
Indexes: Orange-gold Hindu-Arabic numerals
Water Resistance: 30m
Strap/Bracelet: FKM Rubber Strap 22, tapering 18mm

Caliber: P024 without date, self-winding version, modified with jumping hour module developed by Theo Auffret
Functions: Jump hour with hours and minute
Power Reserve: 38 hours
Winding: Automatic
Frequency: 28,800 vibrations per hour 

Price: 13,000 AED before VAT (approximately $3,500)
Availability: At Perpétuel Gallery
Limited Edition: Yes, 25 pieces

For more, click here.