“Excellence in international design”—highest honours for the latest NOMOS model at the 2019 German Design Awards.
GLASHÜTTE/BERLIN, NOVEMBER 2018. Autobahn, released in 2018 and the most dynamic design from NOMOS Glashütte to date, has officially joined the top echelons of the international design world. The German Design Council, founded as an initiative of the German Federal Parliament in 1953 and since then a leading authority on branding and design in Germany, bestowed its highest honour on the timepiece: Autobahn brought home Gold in the luxury category at the 2019 German Design Awards (GDA).
The dashing timepiece is the product of a collaboration with internationally renowned product and interior designers Tina Bunyaprasit and Werner Aisslinger (Vitra, Loftcube, Juli Chair). Their goal was to attract new customers to NOMOS Glashütte with a bold yet playful design. Both the name, which was originally the working title and the distinctive dial convey the underlying concept: a powerful watch with the full-bodied curves of analogue gauges in classic cars. Inspired by midcentury design and still firmly planted in the here-and-now, Autobahn builds a bridge between past and present—while appealing to design enthusiasts far beyond the world of automobiles.
Autobahn is available in three dial colourways: white silver-plated, sports grey, and midnight blue. All three watches feature a wide superluminova arc on a deeply curved dial. The movement inside is neomatik date (calibre DUW 6101), the latest in-house movement from NOMOS Glashütte and a veritable horological coup. The date ring is masterfully positioned at the outer edge of this calibre to create a highly individual date display—in
Autobahn it is a trio of dates: yesterday, today, and tomorrow. Another practical and innovative feature is the quick-set date, which is easy to adjust in both directions with the crown. An elegant and extra-durable textile strap completes the design. Werner Aisslinger and Judith Borowski, NOMOS CBO, both agree that Autobahn is “a watch with enough horsepower to become a classic.”
#Though still young, the GDA is already Autobahn’s second award, after having received the Red Dot in April. For NOMOS Glashütte, it will join a growing list of accolades that the manufacturer has won for its outstanding design, value, and quality—all told, it will be number 150.
More information about the Autobahn neomatik 41 Date here in the hands-on review.