A. Lange & Söhne

A few years ago I completed a drawing paying tribute to Francois Paul Journe’s tourbillon souverain (I have included a recent professional photographic scan of the drawing below). A year later I began the next, which I named “Datograph: Out of the shadows” (above). Referencing the re-emergence of watchmaking in Glashutte I started with an old image of the movement, cropped it down to the most architectural element, the column wheel and tried to retain the characteristic flowing lines of Lange movements. The cropped image was then heavily altered to remove all colour and exaggerate the shadows. From this final image I proceeded to recreate depth and construction of the movement. The drawing was created using a series of traditional drafting tools, including my French Curves from 19 years ago, and Staedtler pigment liners. 

As is often the case (certainly with me) I failed to afford the requisite time to complete the drawing using work as an excuse. Well since I have been relatively confined for the last 6 weeks and having been made redundant (pre-COVID), I was perversely offered the freedom and time to complete a project that began five years ago. 

I hope everyone stays safe, well and sane!

Baruch