Press

"a 21st century Walden"

"a new way of thinking - makes you reconsider how time works."

"Humanitarian design at its best."

"The most interesting clock in the world"

"Minutes and hours? That's old thinking. Artist Scott Thrift wants you to see the bigger picture."

"A simple perspective shift that can change how you think about your waking hours in a way that makes it seem like you've been magically handed more time."

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF GRAPHIC ARTS - EYE ON DESIGN

Excerpt from:

Liberating clocks: developing a critical horology to rethink the potential of clock time

by Dr. Michelle Bastian, Senior Lecturer in Environmental Humanities at the University of Edinburgh (Bold emphases by Thrift)

Drawing on the ethos of slow for inspiration for both outputs and processes, such work often seeks to support more contemplative experiences, to encourage a wider environmental awareness and to reshape everyday behaviors. The assumption that time is speeding up out of control has led to a number of examples of redesigned clocks. One such clock is The Present, which features a single hand that rotates around a dial once per year. The colors on the dial move through blues, greens, yellow and reds, representing the seasons. In explaining the impetus for the clock, its creator Scott Thrift writes that ‘our whole lives we look up to the clock and see time as something that we’re losing’.

As an alternative to this, The Present offers a way of rooting oneself in a time that operates on a different scale, placing the viewer in a ‘present’ that lasts longer than a second. Arguing that ‘we’ve limited our perception to a single way of measuring time’, Thrift’s clock reminds us that there is always more than one kind of time, and that, like those making decisions over whether to use UTC or an alternative, there may well be opportunities to choose otherwise. Importantly, Thrift’s aim is not to do away with mainstream clock time altogether, but rather to introduce greater variety to the ways we use and tell time, with the holistic time of The Present offering a counterpoint to the segmented time of the regular clock.

"More awareness of the present, less hurry. Life's a gift."

SWISSMISS

"The next generation in home entertainment."

CORE77

“A completely new way to look at time.”

DESIGN MILK

"One of the most Zen clocks we've seen."

COOLHUNTING

"A revolutionary gift to the world."

HUFFINGTON POST

“Thrift transforms time telling into a thing of beauty.”

MY MODERN MET

“Redesigns the way you measure time.”

YAHOO NEWS

“You begin to see the day in a whole new light.”

TECHCRUNCH

"Artist Scott Thrift, has developed a clock which simplifies the passage of time into dawn, noon, dusk and midnight as opposed to seconds, minutes and hours."

NOEMA MAGAZINE

Excerpt from:

Material Deconstructions of Time: Posthumanist Interventions Through Media Art

"Through its innovative design and functionality, The Present encourages a non-linear, experiential understanding of time, aligning with the broader themes of temporality and posthumanist perspectives."

"The Present is a beautiful time mask of the world."

László Krasznahorkai
Written in the inscription of a book Lázló gifted to Scott Thrift.

The Present was a bestseller at the MoMA Design Store from 2014 until it sold out in 2018. The process of making the latest edition began soon after. Over five years and one global pandemic later, The Present is now available.

This is the video that launched The Present.

ThePresent from m ss ng p eces on Vimeo.

These articles track my work with time, over time.

OBJECTS (2023)

LONG NOW (2021)

NOEMA (2021)

WIRED (2020)

DESIGN MILK (2020)

COOLHUNTING (2020)

CORE77 (2020)

DESIGN WANTED (2020)

BETTER LIVING THROUGH DESIGN (2018)

FREUDEN VON FREUDEN (2016)

WIRED (2016)

DESIGN MILK (2016)

TECHCRUNCH (2016)

FAST COMPANY (2016)

THIS IS COLOSSAL (2016)

HUFFINGTON POST (2016)

MY MODERN MET (2016)

IT'S NICE THAT (2016)

INHABITAT (2016)

STEVE ROSE BLOG (2016)

PSFK (2014)

ARTNET (2014)

Prior to The Present, Thrift was making time more valuable as the filmmaker who co-founded m ss ng p eces; some of the following articles focus on that period of time.

AD AGE (2013)

ROLLING STONE (2013)

FAST COMPANY (2013)

GOOD 100 (2013)

PSFK (2013)

APPLIED BRILLIANCE (2012)

FAST COMPANY (2012)

TRIBECA (2012)

TECHCRUNCH (2011)

FAST COMPANY (2011)

COMPLEX (2011)

AD AGE (2008)

ADOBE (2007)

GHOSTLY (2007)

COOLHUNTING (2006)

TIME (2006)

The Present

Press

"a 21st century Walden"

FAST COMPANY

"a new way of thinking - makes you reconsider how time works."

ARCHITECTURAL DIGEST

"Humanitarian design at its best."

DESIGN WANTED

"The most interesting clock in the world"

ASTOUNDE

"Minutes and hours? That's old thinking. Artist Scott Thrift wants you to see the bigger picture."

WIRED

"A simple perspective shift that can change how you think about your waking hours in a way that makes it seem like you've been magically handed more time."

AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF GRAPHIC ARTS - EYE ON DESIGN

Excerpt from:

Liberating clocks: developing a critical horology to rethink the potential of clock time

"More awareness of the present, less hurry. Life's a gift."

SWISSMISS

"The next generation in home entertainment."

CORE77

“A completely new way to look at time.”

DESIGN MILK

"One of the most Zen clocks we've seen."

COOLHUNTING

"A revolutionary gift to the world."

HUFFINGTON POST

“Thrift transforms time telling into a thing of beauty.”

MY MODERN MET

“Redesigns the way you measure time.”

YAHOO NEWS

“You begin to see the day in a whole new light.”

TECHCRUNCH

"Artist Scott Thrift, has developed a clock which simplifies the passage of time into dawn, noon, dusk and midnight as opposed to seconds, minutes and hours."

NOEMA MAGAZINE

Excerpt from:

Material Deconstructions of Time: Posthumanist Interventions Through Media Art

"Through its innovative design and functionality, The Present encourages a non-linear, experiential understanding of time, aligning with the broader themes of temporality and posthumanist perspectives."

"The Present is a beautiful time mask of the world."

László Krasznahorkai
Written in the inscription of a book Lázló gifted to Scott Thrift.

Press

"a 21st century Walden"

"a new way of thinking - makes you reconsider how time works."

"Humanitarian design at its best."

"The most interesting clock in the world"

"Minutes and hours? That's old thinking. Artist Scott Thrift wants you to see the bigger picture."

"A simple perspective shift that can change how you think about your waking hours in a way that makes it seem like you've been magically handed more time."

Excerpt from:

"More awareness of the present, less hurry. Life's a gift."

"The next generation in home entertainment."

“A completely new way to look at time.”

"One of the most Zen clocks we've seen."

"A revolutionary gift to the world."

“Thrift transforms time telling into a thing of beauty.”

“Redesigns the way you measure time.”

“You begin to see the day in a whole new light.”

"Artist Scott Thrift, has developed a clock which simplifies the passage of time into dawn, noon, dusk and midnight as opposed to seconds, minutes and hours."

Excerpt from:

Material Deconstructions of Time: Posthumanist Interventions Through Media Art"Through its innovative design and functionality, The Present encourages a non-linear, experiential understanding of time, aligning with the broader themes of temporality and posthumanist perspectives."

"The Present is a beautiful time mask of the world."

László Krasznahorkai Written in the inscription of a book Lázló gifted to Scott Thrift.

Material Deconstructions of Time: Posthumanist Interventions Through Media Art

"Through its innovative design and functionality, The Present encourages a non-linear, experiential understanding of time, aligning with the broader themes of temporality and posthumanist perspectives."

László Krasznahorkai
Written in the inscription of a book Lázló gifted to Scott Thrift.