Baumgartner, Felix/en
Baumgartner, Felix
Felix Baumgartner - URWERK founding partner and Chief Watchmaker
"Horology is in my blood. I am the son and the grandson of watchmakers. The first musical concert I remember was played by the more than 50 clocks tick-tocking in his atelier in our home. I was a watchmaker by birth and am now a watchmaker by passion."
1975 Born in Schaffhausen (Switzerland) into a watchmaking family. Childhood surrounded by exceptional and complicated timepieces in his father's restoration atelier and this forges his horological culture.
1991 Enrols in the prestigious watchmaking school in Solothurn.
1995 On gaining watchmaking diploma, Felix declined the easy option of an association with his father and moved to Geneva to work as an independent watchmaker. Developed complicated watches, including perpetual calenders and minute repeaters, as well as restoration commissions for prestigious brands.
Milestone meeting in Zurich with brother Thomas and kindred spirit Martin Frei: philosophizing on a new vision of time/time perception. Start to dream about creating own timepieces. 1997 Co-founds URWERK SA with Thomas Baumgartner and Martin Frei. Their goal: to design and craft haute horlogerie timepieces blending tradition with futuristic vision. Presents first watch at Basel with the AHCI: the UR-101.
The highest mechanical precision, along with exquisite hand-craftsmanship expressed in intricate detailing, make each watch a unique piece of art. Both the form and the functional concept of URWERK present a contemporary and unconventional way to connect past, present and future.