Relive 1984, a momentous year
Relive 1984, a momentous year
1984 was a big year for the world – and a landmark year for Swatch. We rang in the new year with the millionth Swatch watch, celebrated our first birthday and became an official Ltd. company. The timepiece de résistance of 1984 was the 13-ton yellow Swatch suspended on a building in Frankfurt, a sight to behold. We’re celebrating this incredible time in our history with a collection featuring five of our iconic 1984 designs – now in BIOCERAMIC.
WHITE MEMPHIS
WHITE MEMPHIS
The WHITE MEMPHIS from 1984 is a quintessential example of the style that powered the ’80s. Inspired by the Memphis design movement, our bestseller from 1984 was and is all about the design of “now,” and the transition from handmade to mass-production. We were irreverent, revolutionary design aficionados looking to shake up the status quo. This timeless watch stands out as a tribute to our success.
GREY MEMPHIS
GREY MEMPHIS
At Swatch, we’ve always been in sync with the trends. This Memphis design movement inspired watch signaled a transition from artisanal to industrial. The materials used were no longer those of craftsmen, but those which could be produced in a factory. This rebirth is echoed in the provocative GREY MEMPHIS. Its striking green and pink hands channel the energy that powered this movement: the resurgence of design as an industrial language.
YELLOW RACER
YELLOW RACER
In 1984, we were finding ourselves as a young brand. Like a child pursuing self-expression with boundless imagination, we eagerly explored the design landscape and appropriated other languages to create our own vocabulary. YELLOW RACER was born from this creative innocence. Inspired by the world of high-powered vehicles like race cars and helicopters, the dial recalls a speedometer. It is a prime example of how we have always explored expressing energy on the wrist.
CHRONO-TECH
CHRONO-TECH
The spirit of young Swatch lives on in this watch. We bordered on innocence back in 1984: when we released this pure, simple watch with primary color hands, we named it the CHRONO-TECH, inspired by the Greek word for time, “chronos.” In watchmaking, a chronograph is a specific term for a time-measuring watch, and this simple watch certainly did no more than count hours, minutes and seconds. Yet it was warmly embraced and went on to inspire a whole design language at Swatch. The success of naivety.
BLACK DIVERS
BLACK DIVERS
When we arrived on the watchmaking scene, we disrupted the industry through a process of democratization. This design revolution brought the codes of various industries to people in the form of accessible and affordable watches. BLACK DIVERS hailed from the world of SCUBA diving, with its sporty, functional style. The original design featured distinctive glow-in-the-dark hands in the spirit of easy deep sea reading and holes in the straps for athletic appeal. A tribute to our fearlessness.