Though the stripped-down simplicity of the Bauhaus movement informed some of the coolest watches of the 20th century, most of these were dress watches. Which makes sense, considering the Bauhaus philosophy of paring a thing down to its essence.
But what if you applied that design philosophy to something more utilitarian, such as a dive watch? Instrmnt Applied Design, based in Glasgow, has done just that. The Dive Watch has all the hallmarks of a modern diver — sapphire crystal, screw-down crown, 200m of water resistance, Luminova indices, and more — but its black dial is what truly sets it apart: It's entirely devoid of any semblance of ornamentation and merely features the date, ultra-thin hands, white stick indices and two lines of text above 6 o'clock. Of course, the font used is Helvetica Neue.
The Dive Watch is available with one of two bezels: steel, in which the numbers are admittedly quite difficult to see, and probably wouldn't be of much use underwater, and black, on which contrasting white indices are highly visible. The watch ships on either a matching brushed Oyster-style bracelet or your choice of leather or NATO strap in various colors. (Pricing seems to be the same no matter the choice, so we would go for the bracelet.)
Powered by the workhorse Sellita SW200 automatic movement, the Dive Watch is a handsome distillation of Bauhaus design philosophy with utilitarian horology. Pricing is set at 595 GBP (~$780) directly from the brand, which ships to most countries free of charge.
