We spotlight four of China’s most impressive watchmakers, from the newly established to those long coveted by collectors, spanning rising microbrand Atelier Wen to the horological empire of Benjamin Chee.
1. Atelier Wen
With the launch of Atelier Wen, French watchmaking duo Wilfried Buiron and Robin Tallendier sought to change perceptions about Chinese watchmaking. “Despite the country’s extensive cultural depth, a modern sense of Chinese style is hard to lay a finger on,” says Tallendier, who met his fellow co-founder while studying for a master's degree in Beijing.
“This means there’s the creative freedom of a partially blank canvas upon which we can structure a distinct and exciting design language for our brand, while holding fast to the tenets and foundations of Chinese culture.”Would you buy luxury jewellery you’d never even seen online? Thousands do
Based in Hong Kong, Atelier Wen debuted with a series of Porcelain Odyssey watches in 2018 to immediate acclaim. Since then, the microbrand has expanded with the Perception collection, featuring sold-out collaborations with watchmaking platforms Wristcheck and Revolution.
“We seek to find ancient aesthetic norms, principles and values which we then apply to the watch format,” says Tallendier of Atelier Wen’s unique aesthetics. “The goal is really to get down to the core components of those and, once we have isolated them, to think about how they can make sense in the context of a watch, which is for us a blank canvas.”
2. LYH Watch
“A watch must be precise and stable,” says Shenzhen-based watchmaker Lin Yong Hua. “Quality is the most important thing.” The self-taught creator, who founded his eponymous watch brand LYH Watch in 2006, channels the age-old standards of Swiss institutions into quirky, playful timepieces, often with fantastical or musical themes. “I mainly focus on research and development around tourbillons, perpetual calendars, minute repeaters, and grand complications,” he explains.
Hua’s latest creation signals a new direction into automatic timepieces. “Everything you see and touch is made out of gold,” he says of the new LYH Asteroid. Limited to just 22 pieces, the exceptional ticker is spun entirely in 18K red gold – the eccentric mini rotor, case and movement included – bar the transmission gear and a delicate dusting of diamonds to finish.Style’s 5 top moments from Paris Haute Couture week, from Chanel to Schiaparelli
3. Celadon Haute Horlogerie
“My foray into Chinese horology began when I moved to China in search of my ancestral roots,” says Celadon Haute Horlogerie founder Benjamin Chee. “Along the way, I discovered an entirely distinct and indigenously developed Chinese school of watchmaking and watch design, with centuries of history that mirrored the vicissitudes of the nation herself.”Today, Chee masterminds three internationally renowned labels from Singapore: Celadon Haute Horlogerie, which focuses on upscale fine watchmaking, Maison Celadon, operating at a more accessible price point, and Benjamin Chee Haute Horlogerie, his flagship brand, founded in 2019.
“There’s a strong focus on artisanry, traditional craftsmanship, and the métiers d’arts, which have centuries of history in China,” says Chee of the design ethos of Celadon Haute Horlogerie. “This can be seen primarily in our cloisonné and paillonné dials,” he points out. The house’s technical complications also draw on Chinese history. “Like the hands of our Century Regulator watch and in our upcoming calendar watch,” says Chee. “Celadon timepieces exemplify the grace and beauty of classical China, and are created to be veritable works of art.”4. Qin Gan
Qin Gan attributes his passion for horology to his father, a well-known local watchmaker in the mountainous city of Chongqing in southwestern China. Growing up in the 1970s, Gan displayed an early penchant for watchmaking, often designing his own timekeeping gizmos with his father’s tools.
Still, like many others at the time, he was discouraged from pursuing the craft as a full-time occupation due to the upheaval caused by the advent of quartz watches. All was not lost, however, and after 30 years of making ends meet, Gan started crafting his own watches in the early 2000s with traditional Chinese paintings on the dial.
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In 2019, Gan dropped his first official release, Pastorale, a three-handed stainless steel wristwatch centred by an engraved enamel dial with hand-polished, chamfered hands. “We have the upcoming Pastorale II planned to release this year,” Gan reveals. Expect a visible improvement on many aspects of the first model, says Gan, with hand-finishings and a natural perfectionism sure to entice horological appreciators.
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