Today, I have a new field watch from Mudita, a Polish fashion and technology brand that sells clothing, clocks, phones, and, of course, watches. Their mission is to create products that are simple, reliable, and harmonious. To that end, they have created the Mudita Radiant minimalist field watch.
Now, “minimalist” is almost a dirty word in watch circles. There is nothing wrong with minimalism as a school of art and design, but minimalism as a watch marketing term was driven into the dirt for a good ten years or more. While there are many excellent watches that could fall into this category (Defakto springs to mind), many of us now associate it with a time when it seemed every other watch brand on Kickstarter announced a “minimalist modern design” as they trotted out yet another lazy, pseudo-Bauhaus dial.
Mudita is not one of these. As you peruse their website, you’ll notice that each item reflects a clean, direct aesthetic that prioritizes function without industrial utilitarianism. Soft lines, muted colors, and organic shapes predominate.
The Radiant fully reflects this ethos, starting with a brushed stainless steel case with a softly rounded bezel juxtaposed against the crisp edges of its profile. Small, blunt guards protect a toothy, signed crown. As you would demand of a field watch, the Radiant is well-equipped for use in the elements, with a 100m water resistance rating, sapphire crystal, and a reinforced textile strap (recycled rPET) with a brushed metal buckle and keepers.
Case size varies. Mudita offers a Large 40 x 48 x 10.5mm or Medium 37 x 45 x 10.25 on a 20mm strap, and a Small 32 x 39 x 10mm on an 18mm strap. The inclusion of a 32mm is refreshing, as it makes the Radiant range truly unisex. All three are nicely slim, although I would be curious to see if the diminutive diameter of the 32″mm made the 10mm height seem stouter than the others. With my 6.75″ wrist, I Goldilocksed it and chose the 37mm. Naturally, it was just right.
As you can see in my photos, I chose a Sand Beige dial with a slight shimmer, which shifts the color from flat tan to champagne gold depending on the light. Other options include Natural White, Pebble Gray, Moss Green, Baltic Blue, and Charcoal Black. The lighter colors feature black numerals, the darker ones, pale gray, both in Mutida’s custom typeface. It is the numerals that make this design fun.
The numbers and their accompanying pips are wonderfully tall. Not so much that they cast a shadow, but enough to stand proud and impart some welcome depth. The handset, so often a thin stick on many self-proclaimed minimalist watch faces, is pronounced and pleasantly rounded at its tips and at both ends of its lume channels. Luminosity is excellent, courtest of Swiss BGW9 Super-LumiNova. The result is easy to read, day or night.
Mudita eschewed both logo and superfluous text, leaving the dial open and uncluttered. Squint a bit, and you will find “Swiss Made” inconspicuously positioned around the 6 o’clock pip.
For the movement, they wisely chose the Sellita SW 200 Elaboré 24-jewel automatic, a smooth (28.8k bph) and reliable unit with a 41-hour power reserve. It sits safely behind a solid, screw-down case back. There is no decoration back here, just the same type of sparse approach displayed in every other element of the watch.
This is a quietly impressive watch that delivers comforting everyday utility with a surprising degree of sophistication. Every element has been carefully considered, and the result is quite satisfying.
The Mudita Radiant is available directly from mudita.com for $699, and additional textile straps are $49.99. If you are ready to update your concept of minimalist timepices, then the Radiant deserves your attention.
