The Zenith Defy Excessive Desert is the primary particular version of this most excessive of mechanical chronographs, restricted as it’s to only 50 items worldwide, and we’d find yourself referring to it because the Falcon’s Eye. If that’s too literal, we’ve one other suggestion… Imagine it or not, the desert theme has been approaching stronger and stronger with each passing yr, most likely since 2017. By means of blissful coincidence, the Zenith Defy Excessive Desert may properly earn itself a spectacular moniker by rising proper now: the Arrakis.
Simply from the color scheme of the watch in its configuration with rubber interchangeable strap alone, the 45 mm Defy Excessive Desert appears to be like the a part of a Dune watch. Now check out the face of the watch, framed as it’s with the geometric extra of the raised spherical bezel with a dodecagonal define. Whereas the Defy Excessive Desert is just not meant to reference a popular culture phenomenon, the hour markers and bezel design make this appear to be a homage to Frank Herbert’s signature sand worms.
Our personal flights of fancy apart, the Zenith Defy Excessive Desert is tied in with unique panorama photographer Kourosh Keynejad. It’s a titanium boutique version that makes use of falcon’s eye gems for the aforementioned dodecagonal define and for the chronograph pushers. Given this quartz stone’s properties, meaning every of the 50 watches will probably be ever so barely completely different to at least one one other.
Different touches unique to this version are the tinted sapphire crystal dial with beige chronograph counters, reminding one continually that the El Primero 9004 dual-escapement automated calibre is conserving time right here. The particular environments referenced by the Defy Excessive Desert are the Nice Basin, Mojave, Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts in North America. Keynejad captured his personal visions of those 4 deserts, and the ensuing pictures will probably be exhibited in a travelling exhibition this yr, beginning with FIAC in Paris earlier than shifting on to Dubai and Tokyo.
“The one true fixed in my subject is the solar. We use it to manage the times, and watch it paint our world with mild. The weather and climate are all the time unpredictable, however the solar by no means fails to rise. It rises on time. It units on time. It’s by no means late. When Zenith approached me with the thought for a collaboration, I couldn’t have considered a greater match. Precision of time and light-weight are key to an amazing {photograph}. With optimum planning and the flawless engineering of Zenith watches, I by no means miss my second,” mentioned Keynejad about working with Zenith.
Additionally commenting on the partnership, Zenith CEO, Julien Tornare mentioned this: “I’ve been following Kourosh’s work for a while now and I’ve to say, I’m all the time blown away by the best way he’s capable of transport us to those faraway, untouched areas and displaying us a facet of nature that we by no means actually knew — or just neglected. The wonderful thing about Kourosh is that by reaching his star, he’s additionally spreading consciousness concerning the environmental points and challenges that all of us should face collectively.”
In all different methods, the Defy Excessive Desert version is precisely the identical as different Defy Excessive chronograph fashions, a few of which we’ve coated right here.
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