Digit 6, Paddle Clock by Gino Valle for Solari – Udine, 60s

Solari Udine Cifra 6 – first version – cylindrical version 220 Volt power supply with power reserve. Solari Cifra 6 is the larger version of the famous and smaller Cifra 3 watch. Electromechanical with direct reading, designed by Gino Valle and produced by the Solari company in the late 60s. The clock has been part of the permanent collection of the Science Museum in London and the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA) since 1967. Solari's design is at work daily at the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) in New York also as a paddle display for public information. Materials: The clock assembly, consisting of the motor, the mechanical part and the vane rollers, is made of PVC. The internal panel, however, is made of transfer-printed polyester and fibreglass. The case that surrounds it is made up of three pieces: 1. a transparent front part, in methyl polymethacrylate. 2. an ABS thermoplastic back casing. 3. a lateral closure with lever for correcting the hours and minutes, also in ABS. Mechanical components and operation: The mobile mechanical components of which the clock is composed are: two paddle rollers (one with 48 for the hours and one with 60 for the minutes) and a motor placed on the same axis as the rollers. The operation is simple, perfect and unchanged since 1966. The relationship between Gino Valle and the Solari company began in 1954 with the design of the electromechanical Cifra 5 digit snap clock (patented in 1957), consisting of 4 vertical vanes of 10 numbers each that make up all the hours. The Cifra 5 watch was the progenitor of a true family of industrial type watches, awarded the Compasso d'Oro in 1956. With the help of the Belgian inventor John Meyer it was possible to obtain a roller with 48 blades which brought to the creation of the smallest direct reading clock, the iconic Cifra 3, ideal to keep at home or in the office. Gino Valle, architect, designer, painter, known throughout the world, left his mark in the design of the paddle roller (patented in 1966) and, at the end of the 60s, in the unmistakable shapes of Cifra 3, the smallest of the direct reading clocks. “Design as a language of objects, as a form that transforms their relationship with man, as a communicative force that modifies the environment and the space in which they are placed.” With Cifra 3, Solari's design is part of the permanent collection of the Science Museum in London and the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) in New York where it is also on display with paddle displays for public information.