The GoS Watches Nordic Seasons Winter
If you value uniqueness, artisan skills and originative use of materials, the Nordic Seasons limited edition series from GoS Watches was one of the collections of last year.
Master Bladesmith Johan Gustafsson and Master Watchmaker Patrik Sjögren are the talents behind GoS Watches, and both individuals and both of their talents combine with such empathy that the marriage of their skills is not simply wholly compatible, it is one which produces timepieces of unmitigated beauty.
Naturally the Nordic Seasons collection engendered four models, each a veritable feast for the eyes, each exquisite and each extremely limited in numbers thanks to the handcrafted nature of the pieces. Each model is made from "tempered pattern-welded steel also known as Damascus steel" but the collection is enlivened by Johan's hand-forged designs which have a nullifying effect on the starkness you would normally expect from such a material, making each an outstanding artform in miniature.
The dial of the Winter edition, the final piece in the collection is, of course thematic of the raw, piercing icyness that the season brings to the Swedish landscape, yet it manages to be no less scintillating than its predecessors. At the dial edge, the handworked Gothic-esque index ring provides a worthy frame for the intensity of the explosive pattern and the shorthened, playfully chubby sword-shaped hands complement it further still.
More information on this superb collection is available at the GoS website and you can read the full introduction to GoS watches in my previous article here, with additional images.