A Test of Time

Luxury watch retailer The Hour Glass celebrates its 40th anniversary by commissioning a series of objets d’art by renowned artists and design firms

- Amelia Yeo

Haute horlogerie, the art of fine watchmaking, is a craft that requires sheer precision and sophistication. Oftentimes, it is a process that involves the contributions of multiple artistic metiers—from assembling intricate mechanical parts to the enamelling of watch dials—and enthusiasts would argue that the possibilities of the art form are only limited to the confines of a timepiece.

By that note, homegrown luxury watch retailer The Hour Glass, in celebration of its 40th anniversary, has brought together a select group of renowned contemporary artists and design firms to produce a series of timeless treasures. They are all crafted in homage to (unsurprisingly) the concept of time and exhibited at the second floor of Malmaison by The Hour Glass, its 8,000sqft flagship store in Singapore, until January 31. Titled Then Now Beyond, the momentous exhibition commemorates the retailer’s endeavours of introducing watchmaking to the larger cultural spectrum of art and design.