Voutilainen Vingt-8 ISO Enamel
Voutilainen Vingt-8 ISO Enamel
2017 GPHG Men's Category Finalist
Returning to the scene of past glories, Kari Voutilainen and his remarkable 28ISO watch will be a cause for concern for the rival contestants in the 2017 GPHG Men's category. Requiring a degree of cerebral juggling to understand its subtle but unconventional nuances, it's as fascinating as it is beautiful.
With a minute hand which advances through 390° every hour as it chases a moving target, there's a lot more to the Vingt-8 ISO than first meets the eye, and whereas it might seem familiar in its appearance, it demands a re-evaluation of how we read the time. To understand what I mean, I looked at it in more detail here.
Voutilainen's name has become a byword for watchmaking superlatives; there's innovation, there is extraordinary craftsmanship and there is beauty right down to the slightest detail. With its stunning hand made dial with complex guilloché and emerald green enamel, those hands and the overall exquisite finishing, not to mention the blue-sky thinking of its unique complication, the 28ISO Enamel is all of these. With three previous awards in the Men's category alone, Voutilainen is already a frequent visitor to the top step of the winner's podium at the GPHG. Could the odds be tipped towards another return? Maybe even the top honour of 'Aiguille d'Or?
There are some formidable opponents in the battle for the jury's choice though, and in Greubel Forsey's Signature 1 the 28ISO is up against another exceptional small-scale specialist heavyweight, not forgetting the A. Lange & Söhne Lange 1 Moonphase either, and I mention them because from among these three I think the winner will come.
The Watch Press prediction
It's my personal favourite, but that's sitting on the fence, isn't it? I think that with his Aki-No-Kure looking strong in the Artistic Crafts category, the winner here could be Greubel Forsey.
The pertinents
REFERENCE: 28ISO
CASE: White gold
BRACELET/STRAP: Leather
BUCKLE: Pin buckle
MOVEMENT: Manual winding mechanical. Power reserve: 55 h, 18'000 vph
FUNCTIONS: Hours, Minutes, Seconds
SIZE: ø 39 mm
THICKNESS: 12.3 mm
WATERPROOFNESS: 30 m
PRICE EXCL.VAT: CHF 98'000
Returning to the scene of previous glories, Kari Voutilainen and his remarkable 28ISO watch will be a cause for concern for the rival contestants in the 2017 GPHG Men's category. Requiring a degree of cerebral juggling to understand its subtle but unconventional nuances, it's as fascinating as it is beautiful.