KONSTANTIN CHAYKIN
Who could have thought twenty years ago that in Russia, watches would be made that could compete with the finest examples from Switzerland, Germany and Japan? The work of Konstantin Chaykin, Russian inventor and master of haute horlogerie, has become widely regarded and respected globally.
In 2010 Konstantin Chaykin became the first – and to date only – Russian member of the AHCI (Académie Horlogère des Créateurs Indépendants, or Academy of Independent Watchmakers), holding the post of president from 2016 to 2019. On November 9th 2018 Konstantin Chaykin and his “Clown” watch were awarded the “Audacity” prize at the Geneva Grand Prix of Horlogerie 2018 (GPHG, Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève), the most highly regarded and prestigious watch competition in the world. Konstantin Chaykin was the first Russian watchmaker in history to take home such an award.
His global renown comes from inventions never before seen, such as timepieces with a Muslim calendar, with an Orthodox Easter date indicator, with a spherical moonphase indicator (the largest ever created for a wristwatch), with a moving image projector, and with a single switchable hour-minute hand.
The real breakthrough for Konstantin Chaykin in haute horlogerie was the “Joker” watch he created with the dial as a face, with hours and minutes indicated by rotating eyes along with the now instantly recognisable Konstantin Chaykin trademark, the smiling moonphase indicator.
