At Halcyon, we regard each dial as an artistic work meant to engage in a long-term dialogue with its wearer. It is not a product of simple production, but a journey — from spiritual conception, to artistic translation, and finally to miniature refinement.

01 Conception First: Spirit Before Image

Every piece begins with a clear spiritual core — sharpness, serenity, courage, wisdom…
Only when the team reaches consensus on this essence do we move to the stage of image creation. The image is merely the vessel; expression is the true goal.

Halcyon Origin · Dragon

Strictly speaking, the two creatures depicted in Dragon cannot yet be called “dragons.” They have not grown their horns, and thus remain in the form of the legendary Jiao—a mythical being that exists before the final transformation into a dragon.

The artwork captures the very instant of metamorphosis: with immense determination and unyielding ambition, the creatures break free from their own shackles, shedding the scales and burdens that once bound them, enduring the trials of heaven itself, and finally ascending as true dragons.

This is more than a mythological motif; it symbolizes the most pivotal moment in personal growth. It conveys a profound spiritual power—the courage to face the unknown, the resilience to transcend one’s own limits, and the will to endure trials in order to achieve transformation.

And it is precisely such themes, charged with this depth of spirit, that are worthy of becoming Halcyon’s choice of inspiration.

02 Three Stages of Creation: Paper → Porcelain Panel → Dial

Step One · Ink Draft
The artist first completes an ink painting on rice paper. The freedom of ink allows creativity to flow without the constraints of glaze or kiln temperature, focusing purely on atmosphere and composition.

There is also a Chinese legend in which a fish transforms into a dragon by leaping over the Dragon Gate. This painting shares the same theme as the current Halcyon Origin Dragon, but it was ultimately set aside, as the spiritual power it conveys is not as profound as that of Dragon

Step Two · Porcelain Trial
The image is then translated onto a larger porcelain panel.

• The reflection and translucence under porcelain glaze demand that the artist adjust or reduce elements, so the scene feels natural.

• At this stage, the artist experiments with pigments. If a key color cannot be achieved on porcelain after repeated trials, the project may even be abandoned.

It was temporarily set aside because the red created through enamel firing did not match the bird’s head color envisioned by the artist.

Step Three · Miniature Painting on the Dial

The ultimate challenge is compressing a full porcelain painting into the space of a watch dial:

• Each stroke must be recreated at the millimeter scale — never simply reduced in size.

• Decisions about which details to preserve or omit must be carefully weighed.

• The goal is to ensure that even within a tiny dial, the work breathes with life and carries its intended spirit.

From the very first outlines, the artist must practice stroke by stroke.

Though consisting of only a few pieces, it is the result of nearly a year of the artist’s devoted effort.

03 Why Can They Do It?

Halcyon’s artists often undergo decades of training:

• Ten years in ink painting, to build mastery of brushwork and rhythm of spirit.

• Advancement in porcelain painting, to command the unique interplay of glaze and light.

• Refinement in miniature painting, to reconstruct imagery within millimeters while retaining vitality.

Only those who possess all three can truly complete porcelain miniature painting at the dial level.

Magnified many times, the lion still appears vividly alive—its ambition and majesty palpable. It is the crystallization of decades of mastery, a testament to the finest porcelain micro-painting artistry in the world.

Conclusion

Thus, every Halcyon dial embodies decades of discipline and inspiration. Yet even so, whether a work ultimately succeeds does not depend on artistry alone. The final ordeal takes place in the fire.

Enamel, with its rule of “one color, one firing,” requires each stroke to survive the trial of intense heat. A single failed firing can undo weeks of labor. True enamel-on-porcelain miniature painting is born only through repeated trials by fire.

This is why enamel art is often called “the art that burns the artist’s soul.”
For more detail on this process, see the blog post “Forged in Fire, Born of Patience — Enamel Painting on Porcelain”

Every successful Halcyon porcelain miniature dial emerges as if with its own life. It is not merely a measure of time, but a crystallization of the artist’s devotion and fire’s alchemy. Whether admired in company or in moments of solitude, it offers a resonance that transcends time — a quiet shock and a lasting sense of awe.