ce Jewelers and Fears Watch Company proudly unveil the Brunswick 38 ’De Stijl Edition’: a 50-piece limited edition that unites British watchmaking with Dutch design sensibility. Inspired by De Stijl, the early twentieth-century movement founded by Theo van Doesburg and defined by Piet Mondriaan, the watch is a study in equilibrium—balancing restraint with expression, geometry with emotion.

From conversation to creation, the collaboration between Ace Jewelers and Fears unfolds as a meeting of philosophies—where design, technique, and culture converge.

The ’De Stijl Edition’ grew from a friendship grounded in shared curiosity. As Alon Ben Joseph of Ace recalls, late-night conversations with Nicholas Bowman-Scargill, (4th) Managing Director of Fears, and Lee Yuen-Rapati, the brand’s Design Manager, turned from watches to art, architecture, and the philosophy of form. Inevitably, their discussions returned to De Stijl—a movement that embodied their fascination with proportion, structure, and clarity.

“When we discussed a potential collaboration, we all quickly agreed it had to be De Stijl,” says Alon Ben Joseph, CEO of Ace Jewelers. “Our Amsterdam boutique sits in the heart of the Museum Quarter, just a short walk from the Stedelijk Museum, home to many works by artists of the movement. It felt natural to honour that heritage. Nicholas and I gave Lee complete artistic freedom, and he truly outdid himself—translating Mondriaan’s balance of art and order into a dial where the black forms quietly indicate the hours. It’s an intelligent and deeply imaginative interpretation of De Stijl.”

That freedom of interpretation became the cornerstone of the project—not a literal tribute, but a thoughtful reimagining of Dutch abstraction through the lens of British watchmaking. It reflects the friendship between the two houses: creative, respectful, and bound by a shared sense of purpose.

“The ’De Stijl Edition’ represents a meeting of minds,” adds Nicholas Bowman-Scargill of Fears. “It’s where British refinement and Dutch artistry meet in perfect balance. Working with Ace Jewelers allowed us to explore structure and simplicity in a fresh way, paying quiet tribute to the creative vision that defined the movement. The result feels both familiar and daring—a true harmony of heritage and design.”

The result is a composition that feels both intellectual and instinctive: refined, modern, and quietly radical.

The collaboration’s conceptual roots connect naturally to the ideals of the art movement itself—seeking beauty through precision, order, and abstraction.

Originating in the Netherlands in 1917, De Stijl—meaning “The Style”—sought to express universal harmony through abstraction. Artists like Piet Mondriaan, Theo van Doesburg, and Gerrit Rietveld reduced art and architecture to essential forms: vertical and horizontal lines, primary colours, and carefully measured proportions. Their goal was to achieve visual purity—a balance between chaos and order that transcended decoration.

Among the movement’s most recognisable creations are Rietveld’s Red and Blue Chair (1918) and the Rietveld–Schröder House (1924) in Utrecht, both transforming everyday objects into geometric expressions of balance. De Stijl’s influence on later movements such as the Bauhaus and modernist architecture is undeniable, yet its spirit remained distinct—more philosophical than functional, more poetic than practical. Where Bauhaus pursued efficiency, De Stijl pursued transcendence.

The Brunswick 38 ’De Stijl Edition’ channels these ideals through execution and proportion, merging conceptual precision with tactile expression. It is not a reproduction of Mondriaan’s work but a reinterpretation—an evocation of the same search for clarity, translated into mechanical form.

Under the creative direction of Lee Yuen-Rapati, the collaboration builds on Fears’ commitment to refined design—bringing the artistic principles of De Stijl into the physical language of watchmaking.

The composition of the ’De Stijl Edition’ transforms Mondriaan’s language of line and colour into a new dimension—that of time. What first appears as a purely abstract composition reveals, upon closer inspection, a subtle logic: the black rectangles mark the hours, quietly guiding the rhythm of reading time. Each coloured plane interacts with light differently, giving the dial depth and movement.

Lee Yuen-Rapati explains: “While the dial may appear completely abstract, functional elements such as the hour markers can still be found hidden in the corners of each of the black rectangles. The design embodies De Stijl’s ideals of universality within distilled abstraction.”

Beneath its striking geometry, the watch remains every inch a Fears: compact at 38mm, finished to the highest standard, and powered by a hand-wound Swiss calibre visible through its sapphire case back. The result is a wearable composition—an intersection of sculpture, architecture, and precision instrument.

Precision paired with expression, structure with soul—this balance between aesthetic discipline and creative freedom defines not only the watch itself but the spirit of collaboration that made it possible.

The ’De Stijl Edition’ builds upon the acclaimed Brunswick 38 case—a study in proportion and curvature. Its cushion-shaped silhouette mirrors De Stijl’s belief that purity is achieved through precision. Machined from 316L stainless steel and polished to a mirror sheen, the 38mm case embodies both skill and clarity.

The skeletonised ‘Fears’ hands, crafted in Germany, interact dynamically with the dial’s structure—hovering above it like architectural beams suspended within colour and form. Inside beats the La Joux-Perret D100 manual-winding calibre, visible through the sapphire crystal case back. This movement builds on the heritage of the classic ETA 7001 while introducing a host of modern enhancements. The D100 retains the slim, hand-wound architecture of its predecessor but benefits from upgraded materials, refined finishing, and improved precision. It represents a thoughtful evolution — honouring a storied movement lineage while bringing it to contemporary standards of performance and reliability.

“Working with Nicholas and the Fears team always feels like a creative homecoming,” concludes Alon Ben Joseph. “They are true people’s people – elegant, understated, and dedicated to their craft. Seeing how Lee translated Mondriaan’s language of art into a dial that remains unmistakably Fears is deeply rewarding. It’s proof that collaboration thrives on trust, respect, and shared curiosity — and that design, when done with intent, can connect worlds as easily as it measures time.”

The Fears Brunswick 38 ’De Stijl Edition’ will be available for purchase starting 25 November 2025, exclusively through Ace Jewelers Amsterdam and London, the Fears Watch Company boutique in Bristol, and online at www.AceJewelers.com.

It is priced at EUR 4,114 incl. VAT / EUR 3,400 excl. VAT for export / GBP 3,550 incl. VAT.