Being let in on a secret.
over 1 year ago – Mon, Sep 12, 2022 at 12:46:39 AM

Hi, thank you.

I've turned a corner since our last update and I'm at peace with this process, which feels like an important step towards enjoying the ride. These timepieces are going to look / feel incredible, inspire countless thought-provoking conversations and last a very, very long time. 

Grateful to have the opportunity to make The Present again, optimistic about the future and beginning to dream of assembly, sooner rather than later I will be waking up to actually make it happen.

In time,

Scott Thrift

on some quiet afternoon in the near future.
over 1 year ago – Fri, Aug 12, 2022 at 04:49:35 PM

Will Ai ever be able to match the work of artists? Yep. 

The images you are seeing were created in roughly seven seconds using OpenAi's DALL-E 2 image generator. All you have to do is a write a simple prompt and it makes art. For instance, "Full moon painting by Hilma af Klint" is all I wrote for the cracking image above.

The prompt I wrote below was "cyanotype blueprint of the human mind".

 This was "cyanotype blueprint of E=Mc2"

UPDATE

I know you're here to get the latest update from the person who will not give up until these clocks on are on your wall so buckle up for more frustrating news.

The prints.

For some vague reason, the printer has decided to change the type of printer these prints are made on, after all this time and all of this work to get it right they want to completely shift gears and practically start over. I know, I know... it's crazy. Trust me, I let them know what a bad idea that is.

From what I understand, it takes the previous printing machine, y'know, the one we already have approved prints for, it takes too long for the prints to be made so they have sent it to another machine. 

I was informed in person on July 11th the job would be done in two weeks. Three weeks after that they had nothing and started to talk about changing the printer, which they have now done. They've already sent me samples and there is more work to do to get them to the level we were already at with the previous printer.

The image above did not actually happen but it sure feels that way. In this short video I see the prints from the printer for the first time and discuss where we are with the process.

Just in case, I am working on a back up. I've called them, discussed my situation and on Tuesday I sent them the print ready files and physical samples of the approved prints I'm already happy with so they can attempt to match the quality. We will have an answer from the current printer soon regarding our request to go back to the original machine and new samples from our back up soon as well.

One more time, it's all going to work out, and soon, these updates will be a part of the distant past as you appreciate the timepiece we're making together on some quiet afternoon in the near future. 

In time,

Scott Thrift

Full Moon - August 11, 2022

Two years. Two years?
over 1 year ago – Fri, Jul 22, 2022 at 05:06:43 AM

 2012 - 2018

• The Present LLC is formed in Brooklyn, NY
• Multiple iterations commence in search of an elegantly designed tool/compass.
• The Present becomes a Bestseller at the MoMA Design Store, sells out twice.

2018

•  A woman named Maria in Australia reaches out in search of owning a clock, only to find out The Present sold out, once again. 
• A contract is entered with a wholesaler to produce The Present however, by February 2020 no prototype exists and I choose to not renew the two year contract.

July 20, 2020 

• Kickstarter project goes live for new Lunar style and full trio early bird pricing.
• Maria finally gets the chance to back a new edition of The Present.

2021

• Supply chain restrictions send material and shipping costs through the roof.
• Multiple delays primarily centered around making the print domino.

2022

• Seed Investment support and business partner acquired.
• Found a place to live near the place to make time.

July 20, 2022 

Printmaking Update - Here we are

As of today, many of you have now been waiting two years for The Present and Maria has been waiting since the winter of 2018.

• Met with Duggal on the day of the full moon last week for an additional in person approval they requested. 
• When I arrived, to my surprise, they only had a handful of prints as they wanted me to approve once more before moving forward. 
• They already had my signed proofs but okay, so I traveled 250 miles to see them in person again and they look good to me, please print them.

• Got the news of the two to three week delay last week on the full moon in the middle of moving the last of our things from Brooklyn storage to our new place way, way out of town. 
• For the past year we have not had a permanent home so finding a place and signing a lease is already doing wonders for a sense of stability as we head into assembly.

• Knowing the range of the delay also gave me time to be able to scramble together some order to both the new studio and the new place nearby, 
• so I could find the time to stop and tell you that I don't know when I will be assembling only that I hope it is very soon and I want to you to know I'm not going anywhere and that this is my life, 
• it wasn't fun at all to hear about another three week delay from Duggal but in the end it's going to work itself out and the clocks will ship the moment they are able to ship.

• It's about time, to make some time, sometime soon.

Maria, not too much longer now.

In time,

Scott Thrift

TLDR; 

Surprise, print production requires more time than initially estimated due to the nature of maximizing print quality one painfully slow sheet at a time. This means I won't be able to assemble the first clock for close to a month from now now. My patience hit its limit hearing about the new delay and although I remained calm this is in all honesty, many, many more months beyond any delay I would be comfortable with fielding. So much rests in the hands of a single vendor who has the power to make it or break it but I have hope they are going to make it, I just hope they can make it soon.

Short and Suite
almost 2 years ago – Wed, Jun 15, 2022 at 01:18:04 AM

SUITE

The Present will be assembled here:

The picture above was taken before I began to move into the space and the photo below was from yesterday after getting some of the assembly tables, boxes and backplates up. 

Clearly it's a mess, so please consider this as one of those "unpolished glimpses" into the process. I don't have wifi there yet (starts tomorrow) so I took the photo below and decided to send this short and suite update out from a café nearby.

PRINT NEWS

The printers now have everything they need including physical prints with my signature for quality control, credit approval for The Present LLC, confirmation from Rochester regarding clean die-cuts and finally, the first down payment for this massive, museum grade quality print contract with Duggal. Sharing the joyous emails from a few hours ago with you now.

KNOWING MORE ABOUT TIME

As the design instigator for The Present, I'm biased when I say living with one or more of these artifacts is practice of giving yourself a gift. The gift is knowing more about time and I believe helping anyone know more about the nature of time is something that matters.

MAKING SOMETHING THAT MATTERS

Right now, together, we are making something that matters and when you make something that matters, what matters most, is making it well. Thank you for being of part of making something that matters and making it well. 

In time,

Scott Thrift

The Present Print Progress
almost 2 years ago – Mon, May 16, 2022 at 04:08:14 PM

Posted during the lunar eclipse of May, 2022. 

TWO VENDORS ONE PRINT

• One vendor makes the mesmerizing prints in NY, NY.
• Another administers the finishing touches in Rochester, NY.

The following layouts were approved by both companies. 

LAYOUT APPROVAL

After both companies agreed on the layouts, reference prints could be made. A reference print is the legend we will all use to keep print quality consistent now and into the future.

THIS PAST WEEK

The pre-cut proofs arrived from NYC.

Yesterday

The reference prints arrived with the finishing touches from Rochester. 

• Thin layer of opaque white to seal the ink and complete the art
• Apply 3M pressure sensitive adhesive
• Cut perfect circles using our custom die
• Pack and ship to assembly

A Larger Frame of Reference

Everyone involved now holds the same vetted reference prints to naturally increase the likelihood for a series of smooth, consistent, high-quality print runs. We have a shared legend and are ready to manufacture the prints to match.  I've been looking forward to writing that sentence for two years.

TIME REMAINING TO ASSEMBLE

Five Weeks for the prints to be created by Duggal. 

Once Duggal conjures their 4 picolitre printing magic in NYC, everything gets shipped to Rochester.

Two Weeks to administer the finishing touches.

One Week for shipping all of these faces to different places. 

= EIGHT WEEKS

Eight Weeks to experience the gift of getting to make The Present again.

In time,

Scott Thrift