Do you wear a watch to tell time, or do you wear a watch to make a statement? Maybe you wear a watch because you’re fascinated by the incredible miniature machine whirring around on your wrist. Maybe you’ve just always worn a watch, and it’s a part of your normal daily routine. In my case it’s a bit of all of the above, but if you read my recent review of the Mr. Jones Last Laugh Tattoo XL it’s becoming quite apparent that the reasons for our love of watches is constantly evolving. I’m looking forward to the upcoming Humism release for the same reason that I so thoroughly enjoy my Mr. Jones.

Launching on February 27th on Kickstarter, the Humism Kinetic Art Collection brings three new art-inspired watches to the micro brand marketplace. These are not simply static art pieces. Humism uses the energy of an automatic watch movement to create a living, three-dimensional, dynamic piece of artwork for your wrist. If you’ve ever looked through a kaleidoscope, you’ll have a good idea of what it will be like to witness one of these watches operate. I find myself literally mesmerized by these watches. Oh and by the way they still do an admirable job of actually telling the time.

Looking at the three designs on offer, my favorite is the Dasein. Watching it work its magic is akin to witnessing a flower opening its petals in time lapse. The Eudaimonia and Geist offer more of a circular pattern rather than motion exploding from the center of the dial, but both are still very cool. All three designs use a hollow and solid round pip around the outer edge of the dynamic display to mark the minute and hour respectively. This isn’t a watch designed to tell you the time down to the exact second. Rather, it gives you an idea within a minute or two. Look at it as a more relaxed way of telling time. I really can’t wait to get my hands on one of these pieces for a more in-depth review for you all.

The Kickstarter campaign launches on February 27th at 10:00am EST. Super Early Bird pricing will be $245, with Early Bird pricing coming in at $265. You can sign up for email updates over at humism.com.

Watch Overview

  • Brand & Model: Humism Eudaimonia, Geist, and Dasein.
  • Price: $245
  • Who we think it might be for: My wife is an art major. She loves it. I’m a business major and technical professional. I love it. Answer: ANYONE!
  • Would I buy one for myself based on what I’ve seen? I most definitely would.
  • If I could make one design suggestion, it would be: Tough to say until I actually get one in my hands, but off the top of my head I wouldn’t mind seeing some additional color offerings in the future.
  • What spoke to me the most about this watch: It’s just cool.

Technical Specifications from Humism

  • CASE
    • Material: Stainless steel 316L
    • Size: 39mm x 11.4mm
    • Crystal: Sapphire With Internal AR Coating
    • Case Back: Sapphire Exhibition
    • Water Resistance: 5 atm
    • Inter-lug Width: 20mm
  • MOVEMENT: Seiko NH35A Automatic Mechanical, 24 jewels
    • Functions: Hacking and Manual Winding with date
    • Accuracy: -20/+40 sec/day
    • Beats Per Hour: 21,600
    • Power Reserve: 41 Hours
    • Custom Rotor
  • STRAP
    • Material: Italian Full Grain Leather
    • Integrated Quick Change Spring Bars
    • Clasp: Pin buckle

ByJohn Biggs

John lives in Brooklyn and has loved watches since he got his first Swatch Irony automatic in 1998. He is the editor of WristWatchReview.

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