Patek Philippe

Greetings,

...I would think even if the Bauhaus movement wasn't consciously considered, it would have been an obvious influencer to any designer who wanted to appear 'modern' at that time. The look of the Calatrava certainly can be said to follow the Bauhaus design philosophy. 

but I'm specifically looking for information which is positively sourced.
I have lost interest in the watch-webzine fashion of unsupported assertions.
Thanks and best regards

If I can find the magazine I’ll advise you in due course
Regards
Darma

I will read with great interest if you find it!

For me this is a "grown" design after the twenties. The only one what reminds that there is design, are the long lugs and may be the bezel.

Patek was not the only house who had this case, i have a LONGINES of this years with the same case. I have seen Vacherons in Calatrava style too and others.

My Longines, now my mother wears this watch every day, is from 1935, 18 kt. gold and 31mm. You can observe the long lugs in relation to the case.

I dont think that the design in this years was an important thing, first of all the case were to protect the movement.

May be what we call today design, was the time waste and sometimes we can see some elements of art directions like ART DECO.

Best Walter

Bauhaus focused on geometrical minimalism. It appreciated the look of mass production but stressed the importance of hand craftsmanship.
This perfectly sums up the design of the original Calatrava. Although I don't know if it was originally designed within the physical walls of the Bauhaus School, there's no doubt that the Calatrava, along with other watches of the time, were influenced by what was popular when they were designed. And what was popular was Bauhaus.

Not sure why you don’t think design is an appropriate word. Design in the modern sense has existed at least since the turn of the 20th Century with Jugendstil in Vienna, and if there was no design we would not be able to distinguish 1930s watches from 1920s watches. Yet we can tell them apart in a half a second. And the very word « Art deco » comes from the 1925 « industrial and decorative arts exhibition » that was held in Paris. The Patek 96 according to that Monochrome article was first made in 1933. The Longines « cassa a moneta » watches with flat bezel are watches from 1935-1937 and I’d be very curious if any one found one in the earlier catalogues.
The one you posted is very nice but not quite a flat bezel.
Best regards

I read his comment to mean that the design is overly simple and almost appears to be lacking in design, that the case was designed with the purpose of housing the movement as opposed to being overly complicated or 'flashy'. It's not designed to look like a piece of jewelry as in previous and later time periods. But it certainly was designed with a specific intention in mind, and that intention followed the rules of the Bauhaus movement of the time.

Dear Emil, excuse my late answer, i was five days off line.

I think it is difficult to answer, because you think it is Bauhaus, I think it is coincidentally.

I understand, that you will tie up Calatrava to the flat bezel, but Calatrava also had other bezels. The picture today in the forum helps me to explain this.

I know that Patek, Longines, Omega, Vacheron, Audemars had so called DESIGNER CASES like the Canape´, Tour de Eifel, Top hat, and more, but the old Calatrava in my opinon has a case, not more. So if you say, this is Bauhaus, a shoe polish dose also is Bauhaus. Also you can say, if their is no design, it is Bauhaus. But in this case, the lugs from Calatrava are too stylish. 

Two fotos of Designer Cases. The Longines is pure Art Deco and PP is something like Canape´.

Best Walter

Your description that the original Calatrava "has a case, nothing more" is literally a main defining point of the school -- form follows function. Bauhaus stresses that the importance of the case should be simply to house the movement.