Konstantin Chaykin does not fit neatly into any box, though at first glance, you might think otherwise. His silver-streaked hair and thin wire-framed glasses suggest a man rooted in tradition, the kind you’d expect to find hunched over a workbench, crafting intricate mechanisms. And you’d be right—partly. But what lies beneath is a man whose playful imagination gave life to pieces like the Carpe Diem—a timepiece depicting Chronos, the Greek god (who birthed time) holding a functional hourglass integrated into its dial, to a Minion-themed titanium watch priced at nearly $30,000 SGD.
I had the privilege of exchanging a few words with Chaykin at IAMWATCH, a bustling watch fair which brought together watchmakers, collectors, and enthusiasts alike. Here, he shared more about the release of his new creation, the ThinKing—a watch measuring a mere 1.65mm in thickness. To put that into perspective, this is the thinnest mechanical watch in existence. If that doesn’t blow your mind, consider the level of ingenuity required for an independent watchmaker to not only craft such a marvel, but out-thin(k) the colossal watchmaking houses.
The ThinKing borrows from Chaykin’s acclaimed “Wristmon” series, known for their humanlike charm. Two “eyes” on the face of the watch—formed by hour and minute displays—are framed by a steel case engraved with the brand’s signature to form a smile. Instead of sandwiching the K.23-0 movement—a manually wound calibre offering up to 32 hours of power reserve—between two steel surfaces, the movement is woven directly into the case to maximise thinness. Every detail, from the Swiss lever escapement to the ultra-thin winding barrel and double balance system with a geared clutch all work together towards a singular truth: create the thinnest damn watch possible.
But engineering such thinness comes with its own set of challenges. Chaykin had to design a patented strap, crafted from alligator leather with elastic inserts and titanium supports, to manage the inevitable twisting and stress of wear. The result? Not only the world’s thinnest watch, but also one of the lightest.
To step into a ring dominated by giants like Bvlgari and Richard Mille takes audacity—or madness. Perhaps both. What kind of person willingly takes on such a challenge? Does Chaykin ever dream up ideas so absurd that even he hesitates? These questions swirled in my mind as I delved deeper into his story.
“Too crazy? No.” Chaykin said with a slight shrug when I finally asked him. “I’ve had a lot of challenges in my life. From the start, my watchmaking path has been a challenging strategy—almost crazy. If you check my timepieces, from the first to the last, I try not to create classic watches. I always find some crazy challenge for myself, for my soul, because life should not be boring.”
This spirit of whimsy and daring can be ambiguously used to sum up Chaykin’s work, particularly in his pursuit of the absurd through the “Wristmon” series. Take the Minions Titanium watch, for instance, which features “eyes” for hour and minute displays. But here, the phases of the moon form the mischievous smile of a minion, while the pupils and tongue shift with time, lending the timepiece almost a personality of its own. It may come to you as a surprise, but there aren’t actually tiny minions running around beneath the dial rotating gears and the lot. Instead, the in-house K.18-15 automatic calibre keeps everything running smoothly, offering a 42-hour power reserve.
Although the world may primarily think of Chaykin as the creator of the “Wristmon” series due to all the acclaim he has received because of it, that is not how he views himself. Far from it.
“I see myself more as an artist than anything,” he says. It’s a perspective that explains his refusal to be confined by the traditional boundaries of watchmaking. If you study the work of great artists throughout history, you’ll see they weren’t defined by a single collection or work. Their legacy as a whole is an evolution. This is what Chaykin envisions for himself—long after his loupes have magnified its last balance wheel.
One piece we feel encapsulates this dynamic particularly well is The Cinema. Look no further than its rectangular frame, vintage typography carved into silver dials, and a mesmerising Clous de Paris guilloché finish decorating the dial. It is as its name suggests—a watch inspired by cinema. But what sits at 6 o’clock is its defining feature. A disc with 12 frames depicts a galloping horse, creating the illusion of motion—an ode to the first-ever motion picture of a horse and its rider in 1873. The in-house KCM-01-0 movement works overtime to power not only the timekeeping side of things, but also the animation sequence. All this is housed within a 37mm x 47mm steel case, only 12mm thick. Despite the brilliance of this concept, Chaykin has yet to turn it into a collection, more than 10 years since its inception.
For a man like Konstantin Chaykin, the idea of strictly sticking to a brand’s borders is boring. “It might be good for business since many people prefer that kind of consistency—DNA is great for business. But not for creativity, not for me.” And that, perhaps, is the heart of Chaykin’s philosophy. An artist trapped in the body of a watchmaker, where the watches he crafts are not just instruments of time, but manifestations of his restless creativity.
