It’s hard to miss anything Timothée Chalamet does. He is easy on the eye and engaging in personality, yet he is clearly so much more than that. His portrayal of Bob Dylan in last year’s A Complete Unknown demonstrated his unique talent, meticulous eye for detail, and dedication to perfecting his craft. Spending five years studying Dylan, Chalamet not only mastered the singer’s voice and mannerisms but also learnt to play the harmonica — dare I say, almost as well as the music legend himself.
While he is clearly in demand, Chalamet seems to do things his own way, so it was no surprise to see something as niche and refined as a three-hand Urban Jürgensen UJ-2 — with its off-set small seconds dial — on his wrist during a recent promo event for his upcoming film Marty Supreme.
A highly regarded yet relatively obscure independent Danish-Swiss luxury brand outside collector circles, Urban Jürgensen has a 250-year history of high-precision marine chronometers, exemplary artistry, and masterful hand-finishing. At the helm since 2021 is Kari Voutilainen — a pioneer of contemporary independent watchmaking and one of its most celebrated figures, with 11 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève prizes to his name — who is transforming the haute horlogerie brand that shaped his early career.
Externally, Urban Jürgensen’s collections reflect a restrained aesthetic rooted in Danish design philosophy, while their movements embody Swiss horological prowess. Much like the UJ-2, the new UJ-3 Perpetual Calendar with Instantaneous Moon Phase (accurate to one day every 14,000 years) reimagines the brand’s signature features, such as the hand-crafted “observatory” hands and engine-turned guilloché dials.
Demonstrating a legacy underpinned by “precision, artistry, and a profound respect for the value of time,” each dial takes about four days to complete, while the hands on UJ-2 platinum models undergo around 50 individual processes to achieve their deep blue hue. Each movement in the UJ-2 takes 565 hours to assemble and hand-finish.
The line-up features a new case design and a reinterpretation of the brand’s characteristic teardrop lugs. The traditional “12” is replaced with “0”, inviting a different way to perceive the passing of a day and, as Voutilainen suggests, encouraging us to take each revolution as a fresh start.
At the heart of both the 39mm UJ-2 and UJ-3 models lies the new in-house signature UJ double-wheel natural escapement, inspired by the creations of young Urban’s mentor, Abraham-Louis Breguet. The UJ-3 Perpetual Calendar with Instantaneous Moon Phase is available in platinum or rose gold.
POA, urbanjurgensen.com
