Aficionada & Aficionado: Designing the Heritage of Horology

Aficionada & Aficionado" was developed as part of a comprehensive two-volume Bachelor’s thesis. While its counterpart, "Uhrmacherei," focuses on the rational and technical dimensions of watchmaking, this volume serves as a high-end Coffee Table Book. It explores the cultural evolution and design language of wristwatches throughout the 20th century.

The Concept: Curating Knowledge through Form

The project was born from the ambition to bridge the gap between dry technical documentation and pure lifestyle photography. My goal was to create a visual taxonomy of horology. The book’s format was deliberately chosen to match the dimensions of a traditional watchmaker’s mat, subtly linking the physical object to the craft it describes.

Editorial Execution & Content Strategy

I was responsible for the entire editorial design and the majority of the photography. The book is structured into four strategic pillars:

• The Chronology: Mapping the milestones of timekeeping from pocket watches to modern icons.
• National Philosophies: A comparative analysis of design schools in Germany, Switzerland, the USA, and Japan.
• The Masters: Portraits of the individuals who shaped the industry, from John Harrison to the pioneers of the 20th century.
• The Archetypes: A classification of collecting categories, from the elegance of the Dress Watch to the resilience of the Tool Watch.

The Foundation of Expertise

For me, "Aficionado" represents more than a graduation project; it marks the starting point of my professional focus on the watch industry. It demonstrates my ability to curate complex historical content, translate it into a compelling visual narrative, and manage a large-scale editorial production. It is the emotional counterpart to technical precision – a duality that still defines my approach as a product leader today.