Fortis has just presented us with yet another member of its Art Edition limited edition series. Designed by a kinda obscure German pop artist Andora and called the Fortis Art Andora Emotions Limited Edition, this crazy timepiece looks like a colorful fountain of positive emotions and fun!
Some Impressions
In terms of hardware, there is nothing particularly outstanding about this Fortis Art Andora Emotions Chronograph.
It sports a rather boring ETA Valjoux 7750 automatic movement, and features a standard layout of an average chronograph. This could have been just another mass-produced Swiss Made” chronograph that you can find in any jewelry store. If not for its crazy mix of colors, images, and hourly advice, that is.
Yes, our stores are overwhelmed with the same Speedmasters, Chronomats, Daytonas, and other less “iconic” products from less expensive brands. Designed for the people who like to play it safe, they are painfully, excruciatingly prosaic.
On the other end of the spectrum are either high-end pieces of art that cost hundreds of thousands and are destined to spend their lives in bank vaults, or, you know, the ones that look like you’ve got them with your kid’s Happy Meal.
Right now, the Andora Emotions is just something that some of us need. Something playful, decidedly unserious, not suitable for a funeral. Fun.
If you have never seen their Art Edition models, you probably should have. Mostly, because this brand is one of the few that are capable of offering you an object, which is absolutely, clearly a piece of, hmm, kitsch, while keeping a straight face about it.
The Exterior
The Andora Emotions comes in a compact 42 mm titanium case with a standard rotating bezel, rubber chronograph push-pieces and a rubberized crown.
Judging by the looks of it, it uses the popular B-42 Official Cosmonaut’s Chronograph as a base model with some modifications.
For example, the hour and minute hands are partly skeletonized. The central chronograph hand is also different: this is no longer a tool watch, so Fortis decided to remove the usual dot of white lume from its middle.
While being a lot, ahem, less formal than the base model, the limited-edition chronograph’s dial surprisingly looks a lot less cluttered than that of the original B-42.
Perhaps, it is because the chronograph’s totalizers at 12 and 6 o’clock, as well as the small seconds sub-dial at 9 have different backgrounds and are no longer perceived as indicators.
I mean, the East German artist replaced first two with some aliens, and the last with a smiling Earth rotating on its axis. They simply became pieces of art, so your brain doesn’t pay too much attention to their readings, concentrating instead on the hour and minute hands, as well as on the calendar display at 3 o’clock.
The same goes for the rotating bezel: he replaced the usual boring Arabic numerals on the timer/diving scale with “LOVE”, “FEEL”, “GIVE” and other motivational verbs.
The art, by the way looks like it was at least heavily inspired by the Andora Space Expedition: a project that the artist did together with Roscosmos for one of their missions.
The only (pretty insignificant) problem that I can see here is the mishmash of languages on one of the versions. Like, abbreviations on the “day of week” disk, as well as “Chronograph Automatic” inscriptions right below the calendar windows are done in English, while the verbs on the bezel are printed in German, was manche Leute vielleicht finden rather irritating.
Andora’s feather-light titanium bracelet also features some laser engravings and I hope that Fortis will make enough spares since it would be a terrible shame to replace the scratched bracelet with a standard one.
Fortis plans to produce just a hundred of these crazy devices.
See also: The Black Diamond: Montblanc Timewalker Dual Carbon Chronograph 10580
Photos Courtesy of Fortis Watches
Fortis Art Edition Andora Emotions specification
Movement: Caliber ETA Valjoux 7750, automatic, Swiss Made
Jewels: 25
Cadence of balance: 28,800 vph
Complications: Date, month, chronograph
Power reserve: 42 hours
Case: Titanium
Shape: Round
Size: 42.00 mm
Dial: White, painted
Numerals: Arabic
Hands: Steel, black with white lume, partly skeletonized
Water resistance: 200 meters
Strap: Titanium with folding clasp, laser engraved
Crystal: Sapphire
Back: Solid, titanium, engraved