I swear on Genta’s tomb that my intention on Mainspring is not to be akin to a broken record, playing the same horological tune over and over again. But the truth is this: the wells of creativity and the chambers of singularity can only be found within the walls of micro houses of horology. This has been proven time and again here by dissecting the controlled chaos emanating from all of Pedral’s creations like this and that one, stargazing at the drifting dial of the Canuck Timepieces x AndoAndoAndo 4th Dimension, and figuratively standing in front of the Nectere The Eclipse as if seeing the sign of outer space existence for the very first time. What all of these brands (and models) have in common is that they constitute the three-dimensional horological manifestations of their founders’ wild imagination and unique talent for storytelling. There are no two brands like Pedral, Canuck or Nectere, and today we’re going to discover another singular brand telling yet another unique tale of boundless creativity. 

For this, we must travel to Taipei, Taiwan, and telephatically enter the den of 22Studio. A multi-product brand created by Sean Yu in 2007 from his peculiar obsession for concrete. Yes, the building material made of cement, water, sand and gravel habitually found making up the foundations of houses, office buildings, and bridges, which Sean thought could be used for smaller objects we can hang or put atop a piece of furniture. The name “22Studio” relates to the fact that Sean was 22 years old when he founded the studio. An industrial designer himself, he has a particular fascination for modern Japanese architecture and one architect in particular: Tadao Ando, whose private homes I dream to live in. Sean debuted 22Studio in 2007 by fabricating concrete rings he sold at craft markets on Taipei’s thoroughfares, then pens, when 10 years ago he got the idea of using the design of a spiral staircase as the foundation for time-telling elements. After wall and table-top clocks, he arrived to wristworn watches. 

In this first review on 22Studio, we’re going to take a look at two of its recent models: the 4D DUO Mist Grey and the 4D 2026 Horse Edition Neon. 

Specifications

What is fascinating about these extraordinary watches (spoiler alert: they are extraordinary) is the fact that they are proper enthusiasts’ watches spec’ed out to be worn everyday. They are not merely pretty faces mounted on whatever case and strap, they are instead well-made and technically comprehensive, a bit how Tadao Ando’s architectural creations are one that exist to be lived in and used. (If you ever had the opportunity to see one of his projects in real-life as I had, you will immediately understand this idea. Humble brag.) And that is a bit of a feat that Sean accomplished as he doesn’t have any background in horology, watchmaking, or in the manufacturing of timepieces. He’s an industrial designer motivated by a clear idea, a precise concept, from which he’s built a holistic collection of everyday items. (He shared something during our call that I wish I could purchase myself as it virtually blew my socks off!) But as things relate to the 4D Duo Mist Grey and 2026 Horse Edition Neon, we’re in for a wild ride. 

Both models share the same specifications albeit their dials are what sets them apart. The 4D DUO is 22Studio’s newest take on the idea of a spiraling case bursting out of a watch head, and its visually simplest iteration of it to date, whilst the 2026 Horse Edition is a limited edition based on the brand’s previous version of the 4D, co-created with Bito, as 22Studio puts it, an internationally acclaimed Taipei-based creative studio and one of Asia's most recognized names in motion design. (I won’t lie, I had never heard of it before as I have become quite design illiterate.) They both come housed in stainless steel cases* measuring 43mm in diameter and lug-to-lug (well, the latter doesn’t exist since the case is perfectly round,) 12.5mm thick excluding the crystal (14.5mm with it,) come with a 20mm lug width, and it appears that the straps cannot be removed for they are locked in place by way of plastic tabs. However, both models come with quality leather straps, grey for the 4D DUO and black for the 2026 Horse Edition. 

*The DUO has a bead-blasted finish, the Horse Edition a brushed/polished one. 

Inside these large cases which however wear great on my 6.50”/16.5cm wrist, beats the enthusiasts’ most loved Miyota 9015 caliber (4Hz/42 hours of power reserve) for which 22Studio got custom date wheels made. Above the caliber sit two incredibly complex dials made of high-density concrete, fabricated in-house by 22Studio’s magic hands, which are complemented by hour markers applied by hand on each strata, some behind longer than others, none inhabiting the same plane. (We will chat about the dials in a bit.) And to further prove that these models are not only visually intriguing and wild but also indeed perfectly suited for everyday wear and to meet watch nerds’ demands, 22Studio went as far as applying BGW9 SuperLuminova on the hands and markers, nestling magnifying windows above the date apertures, fitting box-shaped sapphire crystals on top of the dials, additional pieces of flat ones on the case-back so that we can see the custom rotor, flanking the cases with 7.2mm octogonal crown and throwing a 50-meter depth rating. 

Say what you must, the 22Studio 4D DUO Mist Grey and 2026 Horse Edition Neon are proper everyday watches in addition to being artistically mind-blowing. 

Design 

Sean Yu’s story is a fascinating one and I can only wish to one day be able to meet him in his Taipei studio to see the fabrication of 22Studio’s items in person and to experience what a concrete pen feels like in the hand. And to speak more about his industrial designer mindset and how Japanese architecture has influenced the creation of his own studio, and to see the molds of the spiral staircase dials they make themselves. His idea to combine this thousand-years-old element of architectural design, whose roots date back to A.D. 113 in Rome if not before that, to concrete, itself a building material allegedly used in a primitive form as early as 7000 B.C. in Israel, is quite remarkable and even more so for making it fit within a relatively compact 43mm case with all things considered. And more than that the shape of the dials and the use of concrete to make them, it is the overall excellent execution of the whole which leaves me with my jaw dropping down as Roger Rabbit’s when he saw wife Jessica singing in that bar. 

We’re going to begin our design talk with the easiest version of the 4D: the DUO Mist Grey named so for the the dial is made of two perfectly symmetrical spiral cases mounted one within the other. The photos won’t do it justice, I know that for a fact, for there is a lot of incredible artistic work infused within it. First, the darker grey concrete spiral case occupies the dial’s 1 to 7 o’clock positions, made of six steps climbing up from 1 to 7, where each brushed hour marker is applied between two steps which means they are supported by nearly invisible feet. From 7 to 1, the lighter spiral case slowly emerges from the bosom of the dial to its upper surface in the same manner as the darker one, this time engulfing the doubled markers at the twelve, where one is clearly sitting down lower than the other. At the three o’clock, a well-shaped date aperture composed of a magnifying glass let us see the date numerals below it, and even part of the date wheel itself. And in the center of this concrete affair, three hands. 

Three L-shaped hands, entirely bead-blasted, and lumed for the hour and minute ones, levitating above the two concrete spiral staircases, plunging down vertically into a deeply-set pinion assembly, each attached to it by way of metal circles, decreasing in size the further up they go. In other words: the central portion to which the hands are attached symbolizes the central pole to which the steps of spiral cases are traditionally attached to in architecture. Sean thus went full-steam into this visual concept which he perfectly executed using high-density concrete as a base material. The 2026 Horse Edition Neon, on the seemingly other side of the creative spectrum, is based on 22Studio’s older 4D dial architecture as it is composed of several spiral staircases of various colors embedded one with the other. The impression of depth is more palpable with this one, especially because this L.E. is based on the Chinese Zodiac calendar celebrating the Fire Horse in 2026, which 22Studio and Bito based themselves on. 

More specifically, Bito’s Creative Director Keng-Ming Liu chose Eadweard Muybridge’s 1878 first moving image of a horse galloping at full speed to complement 22Studio’s spiral case design principle, by placing the horse’s pale blue semi-abstract representation of its upper body above the pinion, and its legs geometrically represented by yellow hollowed-out curved elements at the bottom left corner of the dial. Complemented by additional spiral staircases of various colors, widths, and shooting upwards at various angles, the 2026 Horse Edition Neon might very well be the most dense, dynamic, and architectural dial I have ever encountered in my young life as a horological journalist. It truly is a watch that ought to be experienced in the concrete and metal. Moreover, and because of the horse-themed design, the date aperture was moved to the 4:30 and the number “26” replaced by the image of a pencil. Genius. Lastly: the hour and minute hands are polished and the seconds hand replaced by a large red arrow-shaped tip. 

Lest not forget to talk about the cases which are as architectural as the dials are and perfectly complement them. Globally, we are dealing with cylindrical stainless steel bodies composed of shorter bottom sections which angle up and out as they meet the taller upper portions of it, the latter being angled in as they climb to the box-shaped sapphire crystals. On their right flanks, the aforementioned 7.2mm octogonal crowns are sandwiched between two screwed-in crown-guards, which does protect them in addition to adding a desired disturbance to the case’s architecture. Looking closer in we actually see a thin line running all around the cases which would indicate that part of their upper sections is in fact constituted of a tall bezels screwed into it, to which the crystals were fitted. These cases are truly incredible for they indeed perfectly complement the dials and act as the borders of dioramas inside of which the miniature representations of ancient spiral cases made of high-density concrete exist. Hot damn. 

The Heart of the Matter

Needless to say, nothing like the 22Studio 4D DUO Mist Grey and 4D 2026 Horse Edition Neon exist in this watch world, and only a single individual could have thought of them, and the structure of a microbrand brings them to life. Sean Yu, mostly, and subsequently Bito’s Creative Director Keng-Ming Liu for the limited edition, created something extremely unique, both visually through the concept of spiral staircases having a chat with one another on a watch’s dial, and technically for bringing high-density concrete—normally used as the world’s most common building material and second most used-substance on earth after water—to micro horology. These watches once again define what makes this type of brand unique in this world, in our niche world, for them only can carry the singular, wild, and frankly insane creative and artistic visions of a few earthly beings to existence, and to come out at the end of their processes by producing proper everyday watches equipped with good specifications to satisfy the most nerdy of us. My jaw dropped onto the table as Roger Rabbit’s did. 

To reprise one of my favorite movie lines in film history: I am over-fucking-whelmed by what I showed you today. (Quoted from Michael Mann’s 1995 movie Heat.) 

Conclusion

There isn’t much left to be said about the 22Studio 4D DUO Mist Grey and 4D 2026 Horse Edition Neon except this: their retail prices do not make any sense to me. The former will set you back $1,050 USD and the latter $1,045 USD. What on earth is going on here? I know I’ve said many times before that another benefit of microbrands is their more-than-reasonable prices given what they generally offer—good designs or good value, or both—but this is taking things to another stratosphere. I do not have an explanation for it and perhaps one does not have to be given. In short: 22Studio’s 4D concrete creations are the most innovative, visually striking, and complete avant-garde (or however you want to qualify them) watches I’ve ever seen. Period. 

Thanks for reading.