Photographer Atom Moore and Equation of Time Collaborate on the Unique Fat Arrow Limited Edition

One of the coolest things to see in the watch world is when friends, colleagues, and people we’ve known in one way or another find each other and do something truly original and unique. That’s the thought running through my mind when I look at the new collaborative effort from Atom Moore and Equation of Time. Atom is a talented photographer and visual artist whose work you’ve certainly seen on Hodinkee, and elsewhere (he’s worked with brands like Grand Seiko, J.N. Shapiro, and others on various projects and campaigns). He’s known primarily for his macro photography, as well as his Mashup Watch Art, which consists of multiple watch photos edited together to create dynamic and unexpected visual effects. That’s the type of work that was the starting point for this collaboration with Equation of Time, which is the brainchild of Roland Murphy, the founder of RGM Watches. Equation of Time (EOT) actually started off as a watch forum, but has morphed into what you might call an RGM side-project, a brand unto itself that makes watches with the input of collectors with a heavy focus on vintage inspired designs. 

What EOT and Atom have come up with here, the Fat Arrow watch, is quite clever. The watch itself is a take on the classic “Dirty Dozen” military watch used by the British military in the World War II era, with a dial lifted directly from a piece of Atom’s artwork. You might be familiar with the work in question, titled “Fat Arrow,” that takes the iconic arrow indicating a timepiece that was issued by the British military and superimposes every possible version of that arrow on a single dial. It’s an undeniably cool image, and provides a mini education on one of watch history’s true rabbit holes: the small differences between issued watches across multiple manufacturers through the war years. 

The Fat Arrow watch, then, is like taking a piece of Atom’s art and wearing it on your wrist. This seems like a slam-dunk idea on paper, and frankly it’s surprising it took this long to execute it. Fans of Atom’s work will be pleased to know that a ton of care has gone into the details of this watch, which is what you’d expect from any Roland Murphy project. As you’d expect, the watch stays pretty close to the roots and traditions of the vintage watches that inspired it. It has a stainless steel case measuring 36mm, and uses a simple but reliable Sellita SW210-1 hand wound movement. The watch also features an oversized crown similar to what you’d find on an actual Dirty Dozen piece, and EOT will customize the finishing on the case, crown, and hands to the specifications of the owner. As an additional flourish, the large “fat” arrows placed throughout the dial have been coated with luminescent material, so this one will really put on a show when the lights go down. 

I’m a big fan of this type of creative watchmaking – there’s something personal and specific about a watch like this that you’ll never see from a large brand. For anyone who has been following Atom’s career, it’s a treat to see an image he made inspire an actual watch, and the meshing of his avant-garde style with the more reserved and traditional work that Roland Murphy is known for makes for a genuinely interesting collaboration.

The Fat Arrow is a limited edition of just 99 pieces, and it carries a retail price of $2,995. It’s available for pre-order now with deliveries slated to begin in September. More info here.