Maximum Brightness Mode: Zenith DEFY 21 Felipe Pantone

The Zenith Manufacture is located in the conservative orderly city of Le Locle. When the main building's façade became a canvas for Felipe Pantone's vibrant work last December, no one expected that a few months later the street artist would unveil a Zenith watch created with his own imagination in the same bold style.

This was simply revolutionary for a brand which has recently gotten a bit carried away reinterpreting its historic legacy. Out of all the latest novelties, Zenith's most colorful watches have probably been the Chronomaster Sport or the Chronomaster Revival Manufacture Edition with counters in three shades.

To be fair, the DEFY collection that welcomed the Zenith DEFY 21 Felipe Pantone is experimenting with bolder colors as well. Think back to last year's DEFY 21 Ultraviolet chronograph. The Zenith DEFY 21 Felipe Pantone is covered with unique symbols. 

FP#1 is engraved on the four corners of the 44 mm black ceramic case as a reminder of the Argentine-Spanish artist who designed the model. Pantone started out as an illegal graffiti artist but gradually transitioned to officially commissioned public installations for municipal authorities, although he never stopped making cities more vivid.

Pantone worked on the shape of the hands in the DEFY 21 watch, which look like bolts of lightening. The playful gradient of colors from icy blue to fiery orange is carried over onto other elements of the dial. The grid pattern on the bezel is also carried over onto the black rubber strap.

The movement's bridges have also been laser-engraved, which can be viewed through the transparent caseback. The watch is equipped with the El Primero 9004 movement driving the chronograph, which boasts an accuracy of up to 1/100 of a second.

The movement has two separate lever escapements: one which runs at 36,000 vph for the watch, and one for the 36,000 vph chronograph. The movement uses two barrels so that it keeps running smoothly for the stated duration. They ensure a power reserve of 50 hours. The movement is chronometer-certified by Time Lab.