WHO TO FOLLOW: Meet the man determined to make watch culture less pale, male and stale
Ricardo SimeA few months back, I stepped out from my overly sanitized home to attend a watch meetup hosted by Rado. There, with a group of hardcore NYC watchfam, I got to check out the brand’s latest releases. There were artistic collaborative pieces and a few two-tone Captain Cooks strewn about a table of drinks, hor d’oeuvres and cameras. Yet, that night, the watches, as amazing as they were, became a footnote to a conversation shared with some like-minded collectors. A conversation sparked by today’s follow, @wristshotnyc .
Jason, the man behind @wristshotnyc, runs a straight-forward account where he shares wrist shots of his watches. The first time we crossed paths was at an Oris event in NYC. I’d love to say it was his words that caught my attention but I’d be lying. My gaze went straight to the platinum Day-Date on his wrist. It’s a watch that is the definition of stealth wealth and is absolutely beautiful in person. Once the hypnotising power of the meteorite dial wore off, I spent a few minutes actually getting to know the man wearing it. But before I could learn too much, the night came to a close and we ended up going our separate ways.
That encounter was months ago and after hours of conversation, as well as multiple events, it became clear that Jason was definitely someone I had to feature on Who To Follow.
How did you get into watches in the first place?
“I’ve been into watches for as long as I can remember. ” Jason explains. “As a child, my father had watch (and knife) catalogues laying around the house that I’d browse and while I didn’t know anything about watches at that time, I remember thinking they were cool as hell.
“Then came my first watch, a Swatch that I received on my eighth birthday. It had a transparent blue case with a diver’s bezel on a bright yellow strap and I was so excited that I asked my parents if I could take a shower with it on, since that was the closest I was going to get to scuba diving at that time in my life.”
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“With all of this said, my passion has deeper roots that started with my paternal grandfather – he left two family heirlooms upon his passing; a Patek Golden Ellipse double signed with a Gübelin stamp, and an 18K vintage Piaget dress watch.”
As you’ve grown as a collector, what is it you now find drives your passion for watches?
“To me, watches represent the ultimate confluence of design, art and engineering. The skill and craft required to design, manufacture, finish and assemble all of these parts on such a micro level is a testament to human ingenuity and creativity. In terms of pure creative and artistic expression, watches provide one of the most compelling canvases imaginable.”
Now, one of the main reasons I wanted to speak to you was a conversation we had at that Rado event. Something we’ve both come face to face with in our dealings in and around the watch industry. And that is the matter of inclusivity. Or to be more direct, the lack of it. Why does inclusivity matter so much to you and what do you want to do about it?”
“I am incredibly passionate about diversity, equity and inclusion – so much so, I made it a career. The focus of my work is to help companies create more diverse and inclusive environments and cultures that recognize the value and contributions of every single employee.”
“As I’ve gone deeper into this rabbit hole of collecting, I recognise that women and people of colour are conspicuously absent in most spaces within this industry and hobby. And while I do not believe the industry has intentionally excluded them, it hasn’t been very intentional about including them and this is something I’d like to change. To that end, I’m building a community that is committed to increasing diversity and inclusion within this hobby that I will be launching in the coming months. I’m looking for allies to join the movement so if you’re reading this and it resonates with you, shoot me a DM and I’ll share more about how you can get involved!”
It’s this mission statement that more than anything drew me in to Jason. It speaks to my experiences in this hobby. For years and even now, I still find myself in rooms where I am one of only a handful of people of colour there. Watch advertisements with people of colour as a central character are still a rarity. These are all things that I hope to see change. And with @wristshotnyc working towards that change, a follow is easily worth every second of my time.