Liquid matters. This fundamental truth is the inspiration, essence and driver of the H²0. The new watch by HYT offers radical perspectives on time, through mesmerizing 3D transparency, plus a shape resembling a smoothed stone that has weathered time to perfection.
It showcases the essential HYT union of art and science, mirrored by the capacity to defy gravity and measure the passage of time beautifully using fluids. This technology joins forces with a mechanical movement in a coherent whole, symbolic of a fundamental, fascinating fusion of time and space. What it boils down to is a unique timepiece that respects, facilitates and treasures the flow of time.
The visible H²0 timing concept is rooted in the continuous movement of a colored and a transparent fluid in a capillary. Like a flourishing river, time never stands still. This technology reflects that core philosophy. A cloche-like sapphire crystal offers an intriguing lateral view of time’s progress.
It takes the memory to the pristine equipment of a science laboratory and the imagination to the protective display of a precious item, in this case time. Viewed from the side, the digits, markers and directive arrows appear to be floating. Yet their anchor is pure precision.
There are two limited editions of the H²0, each comprising 25 numbered pieces. One is clothed in black and harbors a bright green fluid; the other has a silver-colored case and deep blue liquid. Their universal design language is transparency, accenting aesthetics and technical detail simultaneously. The angled positioning of the two bellows that propel time forward in the patented HYT micro-fluidic module is the gateway to an overall appearance with a distinctive 3D character. A jumping minute hand, crown position indicator and thermal indicator are further elements of this live performance in a meticulously constructed theater of time. The H²0 traces and embraces the essence of flow.
About HYT Watches
HYT was born of a question. Time flows and only gains meaning through content. So why limit its measurement to indicating the now in splendid isolation, with needle-sharp hands or fleeting digital displays? Determined that its rebellion should make statements and waves, a multi-disciplinary think-tank set out to create timepieces that visibly connect the past, present and future. The HYT answer is a watch that overcomes the force of gravity to indicate the passage of time with liquids. Highly advanced technology took its cue from philosophy to mirror time’s intrinsic fluidity.
The rest is history. To be precise, it’s history that began 3,400 years ago with the Clepsydras, or water clocks, of the Pharaohs. These so-called “water thieves” transported H2O from one container to another to measure elapsed or “stolen” time. This meaningful visualization of the transition of time seemingly disappeared until 2012, when HYT broke new scientific ground, inventing a wristwatch integrating a patented fluidic module. A colored liquid documents the recent past; a transparent fluid indicates the foreseeable future. Their meeting point is a meniscus, aka the now.
Today HYT is an ecosystem that unites science, hi-technology, philosophy, art and design. Based in Neuchâtel, at the heart of the traditional Swiss watchmaking region, a dedicated team of 43 individuals makes liquid time real time. Their radical wristwatches harmoniously incorporate a mechanical watch movement as the trigger to the fluid propulsion. They make total sense of time – time and time again.
