Living on the Edge

Few things are as iconic as The Movado Museum Dial watch. Originally designed in 1947 by Nathan George Horwitt, the pure black and gold form displays a clear Bauhaus influence that defined by the very beginning of the modern design movement – in fact, the Dial was added to MOMA’s (The Museum of Modern Art) permanent collection in 1959. A lone gold spot represents the sun at high noon while the rotation of the hands is symbolic of the earth’s rotation: “We do not know time as a number sequence but by the position of the sun as the earth rotates.” Through a collaboration with Industrial Designer Yves Béhar, the new Movado Edge merges today’s technology with the simplistic design ideals of yore.

“We do not know time as a number sequence but by the position of the sun as the earth rotates.”

The original Museum Dial is rejuvenated in the new, “visually tactile form” that incorporates a textured face with sculpted linear peaks that imitate the sun’s rays, accurately measuring each passing minute. “Like the movement of the sun throughout the day reveals the topography of the earth from desert sand dunes to mountains, the edge dial relief plays with light and transforms,” says Béhar. Crafted from polished stainless black PVD-finished steel, the men’s Movado Edge communicates the same minimal aesthetic that Horwitt envisioned; sandblasted black, gray, metallic silver, or midnight blue faces complement the subtleties of Béhar’s new design with a raised, polished dot at 12 o’clock, a matte hour hand, and a shiny minute hand within the 40 mm case. The women’s model carries a similar elegance in a smaller (34 mm) package, available in stainless, polished yellow gold, or rose gold PVD finish steel, with a sandblasted face and polished hands provides to provide a delightful contrast. Movado has even translated the classic Dial into a chronograph that balances the nuances of their simple design with the complexity of multiple sub-dials.  Béhar’s skilled swiss watchmaking background alongside Movado’s signature aesthetic complete this stunning timepiece that serves to measure not only the minutes of each day, but the evolution of industrial design.