Ah, Jules Verne! Its Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea, its Nautilus submarine, its captain Nemo… And the Octopus watch. In any case, it is to the fabulous work of the master of adventure writing and precursor of science fiction that the watchmaker Restrepo pays homage today. Last October we discovered this new watch brand founded by a designer with multicultural roots. With one foot in Colombia, the other in France, this transcontinental split led Federico Restrepo to create a watch sporting an astonishing ellipsoidal shape. Seven months later, he repeats, or rather continues, in this same path of geometric audacity.
Restrepo Octopus Chronograph Ocean Pacific version watch. Steel case. Size 48 x 37.90mm. Height 14mm. Seagull SL 4612 caliber automatic movement. Power reserve 50 hours. Turquoise blue dial. Sapphire crystal, transparent screwed back. Water resistant to 50 meters. Interchangeable black rubber strap. © DR
After having launched various models with shimmering colors and complications (chronograph, GMT, calendar day-date-month with indication of the power reserve), nicely called El Caballero or Hasta la Victoria, he now unveils a rather special chronograph: this one is indeed directly dedicated to the spirit of Jules Verne. We remember the attack on the Nautilus by a giant octopus, in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea. This new watch therefore takes the name of Octopus and weaves a link with the marine world through its color palette. Federico Restrepo chose a specific harmony for each of the two versions. The Ocean Pacific has a turquoise blue dial, in memory of the designer’s first steps in the waters of Cartagena. As for the Atlantic Ocean version, navy blue, it evokes his first underwater dives.
Restrepo Octopus Chronograph Atlantic Ocean version watch. Midnight blue PVD steel case. Size 48 x 37.90mm. Height 14mm. Seagull SL 4612 caliber automatic movement. Power reserve 50 hours. Navy blue dial. Sapphire crystal, transparent screwed back. Water resistant to 50 meters. Interchangeable Fluorubber strap. © DR
On both the Pacific and Atlantic sides, the visual signatures are numerous and give the watch all its personality: raised bezel; flange marked with a checkerboard in its upper right quarter; of course crown and pushers at 12 o’clock; and rubber strap offered in various colors: black, but also turquoise and navy blue, in order to play the coherence or the contrast with the dial. Last practical details: the Octopus, water resistant to 50 meters, is powered by an automatic movement with a power reserve of approximately 50 hours. Under the seas as well as on dry land.
