Isochronal Awakening is an exercise in patterning using a method called guilloche and the use of color in the work.  Guilloche is a traditional technique of plate finishing primarily used on watches and involves an abrasive disk cutting light reflecting patterns into the material surface. Phil used a mix of free hand and machine applied guilloche on various components.

The dial for this clock was made in the traditional manner, by engraving the numerals into the surface and filling with an encaustic wax.

The escapement is a sculptural variation on the Grasshopper escapement, invented by the British clockmaker John Harrison, around 1722, and used in several of his famous sea clocks. The battery driven winding system which rewinds suspended magnetic balls is automatic and operates every 2.5 minutes.

Technical Details: Grasshopper escapement, Automatic winding. Brass and aluminum. Quartz mechanism.  

Edition of 5

Phil Abernethy was born in England to a family of clockmakers. After emigrating to Canada in 1976, he apprenticed to his father and became a journeyman clockmaker in 1988. After decades in the domestic and public clock field, their company, Abernethy & Son, has become widely regarded as masters of their craft in Canada and abroad. Drawing on his broad experience, Phil has pursued sculptural clockmaking, creating machines based on historic and obscure devices spread over the history of the craft. Phil works from his studio in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. 

“Being exposed to countless historic devices and systems in my work as a clock restorer over several decades, combined with a lifelong interest in art, it seems natural to explore the potential of clockwork as Art. 

Through my experience as a restorer, and after much experimentation, I’ve developed systems that have allowed a sculptural approach to my craft, whilst illustrating its vast history. The reinterpretation of their mechanics, and format, exposes what has traditionally been hidden behind the work of other crafts.

Key to this exploration has been the development of contemporary reflections on traditional mechanics that are both functional in the long term and require little in the way of maintenance and adjustment. This is achieved through the use of sound design, significant prototyping, contemporary materials and components, and by drawing extensively on my field experience.

Visually in my own work I combine natural lines and organic forms with the easy cadence of slow beating pendulums that reflect a natural and more reflective experience of time.”