Brittany Nicole "Nico" Cox is an antiquarian horologist based in
Seattle, Washington
Seattle ( ) is the List of municipalities in Washington, most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the List of Unit ...
. She owns and operates a business called Memoria Technica. She specializes in the area of conservation and restoration of antique
automata
An automaton (; : automata or automatons) is a relatively self-operating machine, or control mechanism designed to automatically follow a sequence of operations, or respond to predetermined instructions. Some automata, such as bellstrikers i ...
, mechanical music objects, complicated clocks and watches, and mechanical magic. She also creates original works inspired by the past. In the process of making her own creations, she utilizes many of the same skills and materials found in the objects she works on. In 2021, Cox was featured in ''National Geographic'' alongside a few of her regularly used antique tools.
Education
Cox earned her bachelor's degree at the
University of Texas, San Antonio
The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA or UT San Antonio) is a Public university, public research university in San Antonio, Texas, United States. Established in 1969, She relocated to Seattle to attend the Watch Technology Institute at North Seattle College, where she received
WOSTEP
WOSTEP, the Watchmakers of Switzerland Training and Educational Program, is an internationally recognized professional qualification in the maintenance and care of fine-quality watches. It was devised by the Centre Suisse de Formation et de Perfec ...
, CW21, SAWTA watchmaking certifications. She then continued her education at
West Dean College
West Dean College is situated in the West Dean Estate of West Dean near Chichester. The Estate was formerly the home of the poet and patron of the arts Edward James. He was an avid admirer of the Surrealist movement, and formed one of the la ...
in the UK, specializing in clock restoration and conservation, an area that is not taught in American schools. Cox graduated from West Dean College with a Conservation and Restoration of Clocks Diploma, Conservation of Clocks Post-Graduate Diploma, and a MA in Museum Studies.
Awards
The Antiquarian Horological Society Award for outstanding work done on a musical automaton ship. Along with the award, Cox was invited to share an in depth documentation of the work in the AHS's publication, Antiquarian Horology.
Film
Brittany Nicole "Nico" Cox features in the documentary feature fil Making Time which also features
Philippe_Dufour
Philippe Dufour, AHCI (born 1948) is a Swiss-born watchmaker from Le Sentier, Vallée de Joux. He is regarded as a master of modern watchmaking, and his watches are referred as among the best ever made. He finishes all of his watches himself b ...