The renowned watch label UNDONE recently announced its latest collaboration with the Hong Kong-based handmade leather goods and fabric patchwork provider Simple Union. Their first collaboration in 2019, a limited edition of 300 watches, sold out in less than 48 hours, and they are certainly raising the stakes with this year's third version.
This year, the companies are releasing two exquisite models: the UNDONE x Simple Union Sometsuke and the UNDONE x Simple Union Urushi. The Sometsuke is priced at 448 USD and is limited to 300 pieces. The Urushi is priced at 445 USD.
Celebrating Impermanence and Imperfection
The collaboration between UNDONE and Simple Union explored the concept of wabi-sabi, or impermanence and imperfection, and this year's iterations are no exception. It may seem like an unusual source of inspiration for watches, but rest assured that perfection remains the goal when it comes to timekeeping with these watches.
Rather, these watches draw visual inspiration from the craftsmanship and wisdom of traditional Japanese porcelain and lacquer art, and emotional inspiration from fatalistic poetry.
UNDONE x Simple Union Sometsuke
The dial of these watches is designed to resemble white porcelain, achieved with polished enamel paint. The minute markers and numbers are then applied in blue as an homage to the sometsuke ceramic decoration technique. Furthermore, as a tribute to Kintsugi (the art of repairing broken porcelain using gold), the watch dial features an intentional crack, allowing you to see the golden skeleton movement.
The straps accompanying these beautiful watches are made from katagami fabric, which is over 150 years old. It is dyed indigo with patterns of cranes, peonies, and chrysanthemums. Given the historical nature of the materials, no two straps are exactly alike. They are truly special.
UNDONE x Simple Union Urushi
The Urushi watch embodies the boundary between life and death. The word urushi refers to the traditional art of Japanese lacquerware and to monks who brewed tea from the urushi tree as a ritual to complete their impending mummification process (yes, really!).
The black enamel-painted dial of these watches resembles black lacquerware, decorated in the maki-e tradition, and sprinkled with precious metals. These watches are equipped with a Japanese mechanical movement TMINH35A with automatic winding (provided by SEIKO) and a 42-hour power reserve.