Design is at the heart of all human creation. From the earliest flint hand axe to the most mind-bogglingly complicated jet fighter, design is the secret sauce that makes things function perfectly. Architect Louis Sullivan’s famous mantra Form follows Function suggests that an object’s function that is always the starting point in defining its appearance. And in that functionality – as with Marc Newson’s minimalist champagne bottle for Dom Perignon, there can also be great beauty. Here at Aera, we strive to celebrate the symbiosis of function and beauty in everything we create. To function, our watches must be tools for life. They must convey information – the passage of time – with clarity and precision. For us that clarity is created in the elliptical curve of a sapphire crystal contrast of white and black, of matt and polished surfaces, or in the eerie glow of Globolight indexes. But our watches must also function on the wrist, protect their movements against the elements and be comfortable and ergonomic to wear in order to achieve what we’re striving for; the elegance of simplicity. Here in the first edition of the Aera Journals, we focus on design both in our products and in the wider contemporary world.