One of the major highlights of the upcoming IAMWATCH is, without a doubt, the historic exhibition George Daniels 100: “The Genesis of Artisanal Watchmaking”. This exhibition, presented by Phillips in association with Bacs & Russo and The Hour Glass, will celebrate Britain’s greatest watchmaker on the centenary of his birth in serious style.

Daniels was born in 1926 and was a true polymath. In addition to being a self-taught horologist, he was an engineer and master craftsman who was dedicated to preserving the traditions of watchmaking, an industry and an art that went through tremendous change during his lifetime. Daniels lived through the birth of quartz timekeeping, and saw the effect this technology and associated industrialisation had on the traditional Swiss industry. Thankfully, before his passing in 2011, he also witnessed the beginnings of the widespread mechanical watchmaking renaissance and the birth of modern independent artisanal watchmaking, a field that owes Daniels, his scholarship and practice, a significant debt.

Over the course of his life, Daniels created 24 pocket watches and two wristwatches, before working with his protege Roger Smith on the Millennium and Anniversary Series of timepeices. This exhibition assembles an unprecedented 22 watches, representing the majority of Daniels’ catalogue being together in one place. Of special interest is the fact that two of Daniels’ most significant pocket watches, Space Traveller I and Space Traveller II, will be in the same place at the same time. Space Traveller I dates from 1982, and is regarded by many as the purest physical expression of Daniels’ watchmaking philosophy. Space Traveller II (also dated 1982) was created, in part, because Daniels’ regretted selling the first edition, and it represented an evolution of the concept — notably adding a chronograph capable of measuring sidereal and mean solar time into an already intricate piece. What’s even more special about this watch is that it was his personal watch for the rest of his life. In addition, the exhibition highlights a 1987 grand complication, the unique four-minute tourbillon, and a platinum Omega De Ville from 1999, from the first series of commercial watches made using his Co-Axial escapement.

In addition to this rare opportunity to see so many of Daniels’ watches in one place, the George Daniels 100: “The Genesis of Artisanal Watchmaking” will also feature an exclusive early premiere of a new film exploring Daniels’ profound influence on watchmaking and his enduring legacy as the godfather of independent artisanal watchmaking.

George Daniels 100: “The Genesis of Artisanal Watchmaking” will take place at IAMWATCH 2026, at The Singapore EDITION from 12 to 15 November, with public days from 13 to 15 November. Admission is complimentary, and registration is open through this link.