The Holthinrichs DECONSTRUCTED, A Radical New Era For The 3D-Printed Watch Specialist

For the better part of half a decade, we have been keeping close tabs on a very specific watchmaker of Dutch origin; Michiel Holthinrichs. This young man, 33 years of age now, has a very different approach to design compared to the vast majority of watchmaking companies out there. Utilizing his background as an architect to the fullest, Holthinrichs Watches have been pioneering 3D printed technology in combination with ornamental design. The inaugural model of the brand, the Ornament 1 has recently gone out of production and new creations were to be expected to take its place. The first new creation to emerge from the Atelier in Delft is the DECONSTRUCTED, a watch that looks like nothing else on the planet!

We’ve grown to know and love the Ornament 1 and all its derivates by heart really, and personally, I have a very soft spot for the work done by the Holthinrichs Watches team. But before I dive into the details of this new watch; reset your brain now. This is not, and I repeat, NOT a simple evolution of the Ornament 1. This is a revolution instead and one to shape Holthinrichs’ future for the next couple of years. The team has pulled out all the stops to get as much out of the 3D printing technology as currently possible, and it shows!

From every possible angle, this is an extremely intricate, almost organic design. To start off with the basics, the case is 3D printed in titanium and measures a rather compact 38.5mm in diameter and 9.8mm in height (including the crystal). It features returning styling elements such as the Holthinrichs signature in the caseband, the openworked lugs and the 3D printed caseback. However, it is a complete redesign and much more pronounced than it ever has been.

The Holthinrichs DECONSTRUCED, launched last year.

The beauty of it all lies in the many, many details to be discovered. The way the lugs are shaped and joined to the case, for instance, reminds me of a femur bone connected to a pelvis. The watch also looks more open, more airy in a sense. There are sharp angles, multiple corners, brushed and polished details, and raw printed segments, and it all flows together very nicely. It becomes something meta-human or bio-mechanical almost. It’s otherworldly for sure, but oddly satisfying, to be honest!

The Holthinrichs DECONSTRUCTED also has a dial made completely in-house, using over 25 components. Multiple elements have different levels and makeup what is essentially a deconstructed dial, not to be mistaken for skeletonized. The polished hour markers divide the dial into individual segments, each one with a different shape from the others. Time is indicated with newly shaped and openworked hour and minute hands, combined with a segmented small second subdial in the bottom. In the middle, it all comes together to reveal the newly (de)constructed Calibre HW-M01.

Speaking about the movement, this still uses the geartrain of the manually wound ETA/Peseux 7001 calibre. Beyond that, it has been completely designed and developed in-house, with most of it being Dutch made as well. About three-quarters of the movement is totally new, and the look befits the overall deconstructed concept of the, well, DECONSTRUCTED. The manually wound movement, storing 42 hours of power reserve when fully wound, is entirely finished in-house too. This includes frosted, polished and brushed surfaces, bevelled and polished angles, engraving, and more. It also has a free-sprung balance, fitted with inertia weights.

It would be a shame to wear such a unique creation on something as mundane as a leather strap. And although Holthinrichs does supply one with the watch, I’d rather focus on the other options instead. The first of which is a 3D-printed rubber strap with a pattern based on the scales of an alligator strap (sadly unavailable in our photo shoot). But the one that surely stands out the most is the 3D-printed titanium bracelet. This gives it an even wilder alienesque, bio-mechanical appearance, like something H.R. Giger could have created! The way this is constructed is unlike anything I have ever seen before.

With it, the watch tips the scale at 51 grams only! Without it, that drops down to an unbelievable 20 grams. It’s a very odd yet intriguing sensation putting this one on! The segmented bracelet articulates very nicely and makes full use of the possibilities of 3D printing technology. The alternation between brushed and polished segments alternate in position, extending the look and feel of the case and movement down to the bracelet. Even down to the fully integrated quick-release system and the folding clasp (see above).

Now, there are some final things to discuss regarding the new Holthinrichs DECONSTRUCTED. It is a watch unlike any other, and quite frankly impossible to categorize. It doesn’t fit into any existing grouping of watches, and that’s perhaps the best part of it. The price for this immensely original watch is EUR 35,000 before taxes, which means Holthinrichs is stepping into the higher echelons of indie watchmaking. There’s also a lead time of 18 months between the moment you order it, and the moment it is delivered to you, but that’s to be expected with such a labour-intensive watch. Only 20 pieces of this exact configuration will be built, but Michiel has informed me more variations are on the horizon.

You could argue that a price of EUR 35,000 excluding taxes is a lot for a watch with a movement based on the geartrain of an ETA/Peseux 7001, and you’d be partially right. But, challenging you to look beyond movement origins alone, the Holthinrichs DECONSTRUCTED is much more than a basic sum of its parts. It offers a glimpse of something very futuristic, yet traditionally crafted, with a ton of manual labour involved. And above all, it is by far the most forward-thinking, original and creative expression of the architectural watchmaking vision Michiel Holthinrichs started out with.

Disclaimer: The watch we photographed is a prototype. Upon close inspection, you can possibly see minor flaws and imperfections that will not be present in the final production model. The bracelet will be further refined, and the text in the caseback will be sharpened in the final production model as well.