My last appointment on Friday was Stepan Sarpaneva, another favorite of mine. Stepan has been busy, he showed me several new models and variations of other existing models. One thing I love about Stepan's work, is that there is no mistaking it for anyone else. I suspect he derived some of that design purity from when he worked in St. Croix at the atelier of that other creative genius Vianney Halter. Stepan's Nordic origins are brought out in some of his pieces in a fun way. The moon that is terribly important up North, as it affects the massive tides, particularly in shallow bays, is also something that during the Nordic winters, is a significant monthly occurrence. I suspect this has some bearing on Stepan's creative bent.
K0 Double Moons Northern & Southern Hemisphere.
I was welcomed into the section at the back left of the room, four tables were available for watchmakers to show off their wares. Stepan is a fun guy, and at the same time a businessman/artist trying to make it all work. He fairly quickly dispensed with the pleasantries and got to showing me his new creations. I might say that he has been a busy fellow, as he showed me several new models since last year. The first of which was a duelling moon phase K0, which looked pretty neat. This one had two silver moons against a darkened dial and a DLC case. One for Northern Hemisphere, the other for Southern Hemisphere.
The relatively simple K0 Moonphase DLC that I believe was derived from a custom model, has replaced the inner unidirectional dive bezel for the moonphase indicator at the 12 o'clock position.
He has redesigned the Korona K1, it now has done away with the date at 6 o'clock and is simply a time only watch with hours & minutes. The execution he showed me, has a stunning blue dial in a slimmer case. As a lover of blue dials, this one certainly hit the spot with me. It has an automatic caliber based on a Soprod caliber, that features his signature moon oscillating weight. There was another all grey dial that matched the DLC case. A bit too monochromatic for my taste, but I know it will appeal to others.
New model for Basel 2013 blue dial, it's killer!
Another model, DLC case & grey dial, pretty modern looking and stealthy.
I managed to get the blue dialed K1 outside, in order to take advantage of the real light, and I think it really comes into it's own in natural daylight, rather than the appalling lighting inside Stepan's stand
On the wrist outside
Outside in indirect lighting, love this blue dial from Stepan!
I was also shown the intro level Sarpaneva watch, the SUF "Myrsky". This is a basic military looking watch, water resistant with a screw down crown for a lot less than a Sarpaneva watch. Still comes with an open back, showing off the standard Soprod caliber with a minimally finished oscillating weight that sports the SUF logo. Otherwise it is machine finished without the usual frills found on Stepan's lovely watches. I ordered one for stock, as I think it will fill a niche in inventory.
A neat feature is the blued steel second hand.
Different lighting...
Here we see the basic Soprod automatic caliber Stepan utilizes.
I said my goodbye, inviting Stepan to try out the Southern climes in San Diego with a visit in 2013. Then I headed back to my digs on the tram for a lovely family dinner with my hosts. Sharing a great bottle of ZD Napa Cabernet Sauvignon, we dined on a delicious home cooked meal and chatted away over wine for several hours. It proved to be another rather late evening as I caught up on our family happenings.
The take away for me as always, is the fact that what makes life interesting and fun are the relationships one creates not only with friends, but also business relationships. I feel blessed to know so many talented artisans who are great people with whom I can share a meal and have a genuinely great time whether or not we discuss business.