Ludwig Oechslin is a name you may not have heard of unless you’ve been introduced to the deeper world of haute horology. He is one of those rare polymath mechanical geniuses responsible for some of the wilder calendar and astronomical watches of the last few decades. He is also a dedicated academic and brand founder (Ochs und Junior) with a sophisticated educational background who has been entrusted with important roles in the timepiece industry such as being the curator of the International Horology Museum (MIH) in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Switzerland.

Ludwig’s main entrance into the luxury timepiece world was in the 1980s when the then-owner of Ulysse Nardin (the great Rolf Schynder) asked him to develop complicated watches that had never existed. Mr. Oechslin became famous in the horology community when he restored a long-broken astronomical clock at the Vatican – which created confidence in the abilities of the young mathematician, historian, engineer, and watchmaker. The first three products he designed for Ulysse Nardin became known as “The Trilogy” and began with the Ulysse Nardin Astrolabium Galileo Galilei (one of the first watches I wrote about on aBlogtoWatch more than 16 years ago now). The other two models in the series were the Planetarium and the Tellurium. Each of The Trilogy watches was a limited edition that – for the first time in a wristwatch – displayed complicated astronomical data and built on the knowledge Ludwig Oechslin gained while restoring similar antique devices.

One of the most famous Ulysse Nardin watches that Mr. Oechslin created was the original Freak. At the time, no one had ever before used silicon (aka silicium) in a wristwatch movement. When the original Freak was released in 2001, it was instantly polarizing and helped define much of what people appreciate in Ulysse Nardin today. More recently, the adoption of silicon components in watch movements has become mainstream. Ludwig and Rolf were certainly ahead of their time. Another beautiful astronomical watch Ludwig developed for Ulysse Nardin was the Moonstruck series. Mr. Oechslin has worked on smaller projects for other companies, such as creating a simple but effective mechanical annual calendar system for Zenith.

Mr. Oechslin’s list of achievements is long, but unfortunately, his English isn’t good enough for a podcast interview (I know, because we tried it). Nevertheless, it was still very important for me to have Ludwig’s voice on aBlogtoWatch. He kindly agreed to a written interview which is below. I would like to dive deeper into the mind of Ludwig Oechslin in the future, but for now, please enjoy the below questions and answers with the great, unique, and prolific Dr. Ludwig Oechslin.

Ariel Adams: What is watchmaking, today, in your opinion? Is it a practical mechanical career? Is it an exploration of history or a practice that is timeless?

 

Ludwig Oechslin: In my opinion watchmaking as a profession that implies that one person makes a watch from A to Z does not exist anymore. It’s a myth that marketing is trying to sell to the public. Nowadays a movement is conceived by engineers with the help of computers. The parts are produced using automated machines. The work that’s left to the watchmakers is assembling the pieces. Of course, there are still some crazy true watchmakers that fabricate almost everything themselves. But they are the exception to the rule.

AA: Your educational background is highly diverse. How did you learn the art of watch movement design and watchmaking? Talk about how your other educational pursuits helped improve or expand your interest in watches and skills in this field?

LO: My decision to learn the job of watchmaking was purely practical. I was running out of money and needed a real job. Of course, my studies in archaeology, astronomy, and pre-industrial history, as well as my apprenticeship as a watchmaker, complemented each other. My studies came in handy when I did research on historical astronomical timepieces. On the other hand, the knowledge about escapements and gears helped me understand how a mechanism that I wasn’t allowed to set in motion or that was out of order should have functioned at the time of its creation.

AA: You were part of a project to restore an important clock at the Vatican. Talk about this clock. Why were you asked to repair it? What was required to do so?

LO: The Farnesian clock had been ordered in the early 18th century by the Duchess Dorothea Sophia Farnese of Parma-Vicenza from the astronomer, mathematician, and clockmaker Bernardo Facini. The complex mechanism was finished in 1725. In 1903 Pope Leo XIII received the clock as a present. Since then, it has belonged to the Vatican. I had been accosted by a person who had proposed to the Vatican to analyze and repair the Farnesian clock. Apparently, he had gotten cold feet realizing that the feat was too big for him. So he was desperately looking for someone to take that weight from him. I accepted the challenge because it was a chance you only get once in a lifetime. I did the work without any aid and made it the subject of my thesis which led to a publication. The insights I gathered throughout the analysis of that clock and its gears formed the basis of my later inventions. The person who had hired me had disappeared in the meantime because he feared I wouldn’t be able to reassemble the clock. To my surprise and that of the curators, the clock was in working order after I had reassembled it.

AA: How did you first connect to Ulysse Nardin? What was your relationship like with Rolf Schnyder? How was he similar or different from you? What types of projects did you both work on together?

LO: I think that’s a well-known story that has been told quite often. Shortly after Rolf had bought Ulysse Nardin, he started looking for something in the world of watchmaking that would stand out among the other brands and help him reposition the brand. Today, you would call it a USP. So, he rang up all the watchmakers whose phone numbers he was able to get. Among them Jörg Spöring. He went to visit Spöring in his workshop and discovered an astronomical clock on the wall, an astrolabe I was working on. He asked what it was, and Spöring explained that it was an astronomical indication and that it had been my idea to recreate a modern version. Rolf asked, “Is it possible to make that into a wristwatch?’ Spöring replied, “You’ll have to ask my apprentice, but you’ll have to wait until he’s back. He’s in the Vatican right now.”

When I first saw Schnyder I thought, “What a playboy!” But he turned out to be extremely loyal and reliable. He managed Ulysse Nardin like it was his own family. When the Astrolabium Copernicus had been successfully launched I told him he should do a follow-up. That’s how the ‘Tellurium’ and the ‘Planetarium’ came into being. The next thing I developed was the perpetual calendar that can be set back and forth. I also developed the time zone watch with two pushers to adjust the hour hand in one-hour increments. Then came the Freak and silicon…

AA: You’ve studied the history of human technology as part of your education and life experience. How might people today underestimate the achievements of the past? What are some of the most impressive things that come to mind when you think about historical mechanical achievements?

LO: One of the most impressive mechanical achievements that come to my mind is the Antikythera mechanism. It had to be conceived by a mind with insights into the workings of astronomy that none of us as individuals have today. Compared to today where scientists work in interdisciplinary teams, at the time of that mechanism you had to be both, a scientist and a mechanicus. And usually, you worked alone.

AA: Talk about your role at the MIH? What is this institution? How did you get your prestigious role there? How did you fundamentally change the MIH to improve the experience as a visitor?

LO: The MIH, short for ‘Musée International d’Horlogerie, is a museum in La Chaux-de-Fonds focusing on timekeeping. Its collection does not only contain conventional timekeepers but any type of time-measuring device. Once a year the Institut L’Homme et le Temps, which is part of the museum issues a prize, the Prix Gaïa, to personalities connected to timekeeping.

I applied for the job as the curator of the MIH after having seen it in the local newspaper. I was convinced I wouldn’t get it because shortly before I had renounced a job at the museum of musical automata in Seewen. I was actually getting ready to leave Switzerland for good.

Nevertheless, I got the job and worked as a curator of the museum from 2001 till 2014. I didn’t change a thing in the design of the museum which had been so much ahead of its time when it was built in the seventies. But I changed the grouping of the exhibits so that now you can stroll through it following different coherent themes. In 2005 we launched the MIH watch containing a module developed by me and manufactured by watchmaker Paul Gerber.

AA: Talk about making the decision to start your own watch brand. Why go that route as opposed to further collaborating with a brand? How would you describe the personality and focus of your watch brand?

LO: I had started at the MIH on the condition to only work 60% to be able to keep on constructing mechanisms. As the cost of living during those years was continuously rising while wages didn’t go up at all, I needed some sort of extra income. As an employee of the city of La Chaux-de-Fonds, I wasn’t allowed to continue working for an established brand like Ulysse Nardin, though. However, I was allowed to pursue my own projects. The idea of an Oechslin watch brand with watches that look like my prototypes was supported by the then owners of the Lucerne-based watch-retailer Embassy. Since I’m not directly concerned with the brand anymore, I’d prefer not to dwell on it.

AA: What are some of the most impressive feats of watchmaking you’ve seen over the last few years that you were not personally involved with?

LO: I’m afraid I’m not following in-depth what’s going on in the watch world. I only notice that there’s very little interest in astronomical functions. Those are the ones that interest me most. In the early days, I only went to the Basel watch fair to see what the members of the AHCI had come up with. To me, they are still the most interesting creators.

AA: What do you like to talk about with fellow watch enthusiasts? What topics in this field interest you today? What would you like to see developed over the next several years?

LO: I certainly wouldn’t want to see their watch collections! I admit that I find it difficult to converse with people whose main interest is watches. The things that I would like to see developed in the near future are the ones I am busy developing. You see, if I want something to be developed, my first impulse is to try it myself.

AA: What are your connections with Ulysse Nardin today? Are you excited about what the Freak collection is today?

LO: I actually prefer to talk about the evolution of the Freak from its first launch until today, instead of looking at today’s collection in an isolated way. Looking at the path that the Freak has followed so far is really impressive. Every generation introduced something new or abandoned something that didn’t stand the test of time. Silicon came to be used in various functions, even as a material for the balance wheel. The escapement was changed, and a new winding system was introduced. It really is the way Ulysse Nardin’s marketing puts it: The Freak is a laboratory in which new developments are being tested. And every client can be part of this work in progress.

For Ulysse Nardin, today, I am an ambassador — a role that I already had when Rolf Schnyder was still around.