Step-by-Step: The Wristwatch Exhibit Takes Shape

Step-by-step we move the exhibition forward. That said, not every step is forward. For me it’s a learning process and sometimes my pre-thought ideas just are not working out as I had anticipated, so again and again I revisit the display.

Tuesday, previous to last, I started to move timepieces to the gallery location. I carefully laid each timepiece out, many with original adverts or related ephemera. That took some two days just to position the pieces.

Although in my opinion it looked “good”, I felt something was not correct. Too cramped possibly? I could not see a good solution, so I kept re-visiting the layout, fine tuning it, but could still not see a solution. Museum Director Noel Poirier and I had a meeting at the display to review how it looked. After some fifteen to twenty minutes, I could understand where I was going wrong. That day, based on Noel’s (and others’ input) I reworked the display cases. Although these may not be the final pieces or even the final layout, I am much happier and feel “It may not be the beginning of the end, but it is the end of the beginning.”

Adam R Harris
National Watch & Clock Museum Gallet Guest Curator of Wristwatches

Here are some images of the progress thus far:

The first display case starts at c. 1900 (wristlet/first ladies wristwatches) to WWI.

Next we have a small case for hermetic or so called “purse” watches.

We come to “The Roaring 20s” and 1930s ‘Formed Watches/Transitional Period’– My first ideas on graphical illustration can be seen her.  These are VERY draft, and will be high definition “collage” style graphic ABOVE the date line.

Next Cabinet – very important – “Birth of Automatic” – you can see here my graphic ideas in the raw, VERY raw!

Here I am ‘trying to show difference between “bumper” and “rotor” automatic movements.

Next case is 1940s & 1950s – Complications Arrive and “The Quartz Revolution”

Displaying the “electric” watch that evolved prior to quartz (late 1950s versus quartz 1980s). Will use graphics to explain difference between quartz and electric.

This may prove the hardest.  I want to show the evolution of the wristwatch movement from mechanical to bumper, to rotor, to electric, to quartz, to kinetic. Difficult this one.

Final display case is for modern pieces – size is everything – Hoping to emphasize Moon watch as well.