In the realm of watchmaking, visibility remains an essential goal, drawing inspiration from aviation instrumentation. Since 2017, Bell & Ross has consistently pursued superior luminosity and optimal readability with each design. The LUM collection, launched in that year, delves into the realm of luminescence, exploring the potential it offers for unparalleled visibility, day or night. While earlier pieces utilized Super-LumiNova for numerals, indices, hands, and dials, the brand now pushes boundaries with the BR-XS GREEN LUM, introducing an innovative composite material: LM3D. The challenge? Harmonizing innovation, photoluminescent material, and high-end design within the BR-XS line.
The Genesis of the LUM Collection
Whether in the cockpit of an aircraft or adorning a diver’s wrist, achieving a display that glows in the dark for optimal readability has been a pivotal challenge for any watchmaking instrument. Over time, various luminescent materials emerged to coat hands, numerals, and indices, particularly for professional use, initially in military contexts such as among pilots or combat divers. With tritium and radium phased out due to radioactivity, Super-LumiNova emerged as the leading material for achieving luminescence.
Though all Bell & Ross watches ensure time legibility in darkness, certain models elevate this further. The LUM series explicitly references luminescence, commencing with the BR 03-92 HOROLUM in 2017, followed by the BR 03-92 NIGHTLUM a year later. The BR 03-92 FULL LUM in 2019 showcased a dial entirely covered in Super-LumiNova, accentuating key elements for enhanced readability. Subsequent releases like the BR 03-92 GREY LUM, BR 03-92 Diver FULL LUM, vintage limited edition BR V2-94 FULL LUM, and BR V2-92 FULL LUM continued this trajectory, each boasting distinct luminous effects.
Enter BR-XS: Elevating the Manufacture Collection
In 2022, the BR-XS expanded the Bell & Ross BR 05 range introduced in 2019, honoring aeronautical heritage with its iconic “round within the square” visual signature. This iteration elevated the BR 05 legacy with the BR-CAL.323 caliber, a prestigious in-house movement by Kenissi, offering a power reserve of about 70 hours. Not just about precision, the BR-XS prioritizes purity, radicality, resistance, and lightness in its multi-component case architecture. Now, the brand completes its high-end line with the groundbreaking BR-XS GREEN LUM, embodying innovation and daring uniqueness in both concept and design.
BR-XS GREEN LUM: Pushing the Luminescent Boundaries
Breaking new ground, Bell & Ross ventures into a novel realm of creative expression. Unlike previous models where luminescence adorned hands, numerals, indices, and dials, this watch’s 41mm case spectacularly glows in the dark, thanks to a specially developed composite material: LM3D. This marks the Maison’s manufacture collection’s debut on the luminous planet.
A Limited Concept Series
The BR-XS design prioritizes lightness, alternating LM3D, and grade 2 micro-blasted black DLC titanium in a multi-layer assembly. Crafted from a block of DLC-coated grade 2 titanium, the case enveloping the mechanism sits between two shields made of LM3D, a photoluminescent composite material comprising quartz fibers emitting a powerful green luminescence. In darkness, the entire case illuminates, accentuating the dial’s indications for hours, minutes, seconds, date, and power reserve. Beyond its role as a timekeeping instrument, this innovation elevates the new limited SOO-piece BR-XS GREEN LUM series to the realm of one-of-a-kind conceptual art.
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