Introducing The B/1 Is An Audaciously Designed Watch By Newcomer Toledano & Chan

The B/1 by Toledano & Chan is a striking piece of design, to say the least. Part 1970s sculptural design, part Brutalist architecture, it's a sort of dress-watch sport-watch hybrid that was constructed to exist outside of the current (and notably exuberant) independent watch symposium, given its singular style and very democratic $4,000 price tag.

Artist, watch collector, and Talking Watches alum Phil Toledano is a bell-ringer for what he likes to call audacious '70s watch design. We've spoken on the subject at great length in the past. He considers Patek the clear victor of ingenuity from the decade that was lacking in design rules across the board. Toledano's love for the '70s is based on his appreciation for intensely sculptural design. He appreciates the unity of case architecture, bracelet material, and color. Being into 1970s design isn't just Toledano's attempt at being a contrarian amidst a sea of vintage Rolex enthusiasts – he just really respects the singular expression of an idea. He is an artist after all!

If you speak to Toledano about his own watch collection, he will undoubtedly wax lyrical about unusual case shapes and intricate metalwork bracelets. We are both very fond of angular designs and textured bracelets from this era, which often all work together to create a single harmonious sculptural unit. Toledano stresses how important it is to look at any watch as a whole piece, a whole form.

The same can be said of his own watch, which he created with business partner Alfred Chan, who has been designing watches for the past decade in China. They met on social media and decided to share their love of Brutalist architecture by translating it into watch form. "When we first started talking, we didn't really talk about a specific watch, we spoke about the Brutalist architecture aspect, specifically an asymmetrically shaped window on the [now former] Met Breuer building in New York City. We wanted to translate that into a watch."

The B/1 is stainless steel and measures 33.5mm in width and 9.10 to 10.40mm thick (it's an angled case) and has a closed caseback. It's a destro watch (worn crown facing to the left) and comes equipped with a Swiss made Sellita SW100 automatic movement with a power reserve of 42 hours. The watch is certainly unusual in shape – it's truly a miniature replica of the window on the Breuer building, fitted with a lapis dial and little angular hour and minute hands to emulate the irregular and angular nature of the case. This extremely geometric design has a clear point of view, not dissimilar to many of the wild and audaciously designed vintage Piagets and Pateks we see populating our feeds on social media these days. If anything it's a modern update on disco-infused nostalgia. It's less of a throwback and more of an intellectual ode to shape and form.

I asked Toledano to expand on the school of Brutalism; I wanted to know exactly how it related to the B/1 design. "It's about hard lines and a play on light and shadow, both of which are used to create geometric forms," he said. "Brutalist architecture is, at its essence, massive minimalist sculptural forms. Look at the Barbican Center in London or Boston City Hall. They are these massive kinds of concrete forms, but ultimately incredibly sculptural through the use of surface and shadow."

"Everything is straight except for the crown," said Chan. "The links cast a lot of shadows and you experience slightly different shadow casting when you wear it outside or inside in different light. I suppose that's the same with most Brutalist buildings that play with the sunlight." The architecture of the case and bracelet and the alternating polished and brushed finishing of the steel create hard geometric forms – all of which contrast nicely with the organic lapis dial.

Traditionally lapis in watchmaking is a super vibrant and uniform blue, this is because of the "beauty standard" established by Swiss manufacturers in the '70s. Toledano calls the Lapis dial on the B/1 a galaxy dial, "which is totally cheesy," he said, "but for me, the imperfections are much more beautiful." The organic imperfection contrasts with what's happening sculpturally in the watch. There is a continuity in shape from the bracelet to the case to the hands. The destro placement of the crown ensures a smooth form on the outermost part of the case.

Toledano and Chan both freely admit that the Rolex Midas was an inspirational reference, given the bracelet and the placement of the crown. But the Midas isn't alone in its linear execution. The Piaget Polo also serves as a graphic morsel of 1970s design with its reptilian-like bracelet.

In today's collector community, it seems everybody has an appetite for unusual shapes. "The impetus for this watch was, in large part, a reaction to what we were seeing around us," explained Toledano. "It seemed like the market was divided between this kind of an endless orgy of reissues: '40s, '50s, '60s, chronos, Patek, whatever it happened to be. Everything had its place. And then on the independent side, this kind of Rococo Liberace design exuberance at kind of stratospheric price points."

I tried on the B/1 on a few separate occasions and was impressed with the sheer angularity of it. Besides the very well-hidden crown, there really was no curvature to be found. As if Toledano and Chan wanted to say "we are making a truly Brutalist statement with absolutely no artistic compromise." It felt bold and brave and exciting in the face of what can often feel like a pathological lack of imagination in watch design today. I applaud anybody doing anything out of the norm (within reason because watches should be wearable) no matter the price tag.

The B/1 proves that you can have a modern point of view without having a $200,000 price tag. Sure, it's informed by '70s design and there is absolutely no doubt that it takes inspiration from the Rolex Midas, but it's a lapis dial watch in a very cleverly constructed case. That simply doesn't exist in the $4,000 price range.

A tale of two friends building a watch together in an attempt to marry art and affordable watchmaking – that's enough to make me teary-eyed. "Perhaps this sounds a bit naive, but why can't we make something that's the beginning of something extraordinary?" said Toledano. "If you think about all the really important watches, they're all shape-based. Surely the dream for most is to make something that will become an icon."

Both Toledano and Chan were sure to explain that making a product is a gift to be able to do. "Not everybody is afforded the opportunity to make something from scratch," said Toledano. "I think it's critical as an artist that when you do, you try and say something new. It was really important to try and extend the vocabulary of the watch world just outwards a fraction of an inch if we could." This feels like a new and very much-needed category of modern watch that isn't just a reissue, but also a refocus on what watch design can be.

Brand: Toledano & Chan
Model: B/1

Diameter: 33.5mm width
Thickness: 9.10–10.40mm thick (angled case)
Case Material: Stainless steel
Dial Color: Lapis
Indexes: None
Lume: No
Water Resistance: 5ATM
Strap/Bracelet: Integrated bracelet 

Caliber: Sellita SW100
Functions: Hours and minutes
Power Reserve: 42 hours
Winding: Automatic

Price: $4,000
Availability: Available May 16th

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