REVOLUTION_International_Vol 54

EDITOR’S
NOTE
his is probably the fourth time that I’ve sat
down and rewritten this letter. No, really.
When I first put pen to paper, as it were,
things were a lot different in the world than
they are now. Words like “quarantine”
and terms like “shelter in place” were not
part of the daily lexicon, to say nothing of “coronavirus”
and “COVID-19”. The biggest concern that we in the
media had was trying to convince our significant others
that two weeks straight in Switzerland at the end of April
was a good thing (this owing to the 2020 dates for Watches
& Wonders and Baselworld’s now canceled shows).
Needless to say, we now have much bigger fish to fry.
And so, here I sit at my dining table, sheltering
in place with my family, as I try to make sense of a
microscopic organism that has completely upended life as
we know it on a global scale. All around us governments
are scrambling to devise systems and methodologies
to mitigate the spread of the virus and offer care to the
afflicted — with varying degrees of success — which makes
an industry such as ours seem somewhat superfluous.
But is it?
On the surface, yes. This is a business predicated
on an obsolete paradigm for marking the passage of
time, and one that depends on the oh-so-human
propensity to wallow in nostalgia for its very survival.
To wit, mechanical wristwatches are the ultimate
indulgence given their high cost relative to the limited
functionality that they offer. Think about it, in today’s
world we’re surrounded by time: it’s blinking at us from
our nightstands and on train platforms; it’s in our cars;
it’s on our computers and phones… Indeed, time is all
but impossible for us to escape from. And yet, if you’re
reading this, against all odds you still find value in the
lump of metal that earnestly ticks away on your wrist.
As the founding member of the global watch
enthusiasts’ collective, RedBar Group, I’m intimately
acquainted with the power of community that our
shared passion engenders. What was once a solitary
hobby has transformed into something much, much
bigger. It has brought people together the world
over, and in its own way, our love of these miracles
of miniaturized mechanical devices has done the
impossible — it has slowed time down and allowed us
to take valuable moments out of our days to reflect on
the very nature of this most ephemeral of constructs.
And so, I entreat each and every one of you to
continue to read the pages of the magazines that you
subscribe to, log onto the forums you are members of,
support your favorite blogs (and even your not-sofavorite
ones), and above all, continue to reach out and
connect with your fellow collectors. Hell, if you haven’t
already blown your budget on toilet paper and hand
sanitizer, go ahead and buy that fine timepiece that you’ve
been eyeing. Watches represent an intersection of art,
science and engineering that has few, if any, equivalents
in modern society, and that’s worth preserving.
And remember, while it may be obsolete, there’s a
vitally human quality to the watch industry’s continued
tilting against the windmills of progress. It would truly be a
shame if, in the midst of this crisis, we lost sight of this.
And so, I entreat you to enjoy your time reading the
pages of this, our April 2020 issue. Inside you’ll find
insightful reviews, intimate interviews, and the amazing
photography and art direction that have been the hallmarks
of Revolution from the very beginning.
Be safe, be happy, and above all, keep Celebrating The
Machine With A Heartbeat!
Adam Craniotes, Editor-in-Chief
adam@revolutionmagazines.com
craniotes
LIAM O’DONNELL