Timely Art

A strong confluence is building up between watchmaking and contemporary art. We look at six watchmakers who have joined forces with contemporary artists to create unique timepieces and alliances.

- Y-Jean Mun-Delsalle

The past year was marked by the emergence of numerous high-profile collaborations between watch brands and artists, who have already made a name for themselves in their particular fields, having believed in their dreams and fought hard to accomplish them. Building bridges between materials, techniques and creativity, the contrasting worlds of horology and art came together to form powerful synergies. They created timepieces or formed partnerships that pushed the limits of haute horlogerie and even those of art and design, adding to the collaborative equation that neither of them could have achieved alone. We profile six recent partnerships instigated by Arbutus, Audemars Piguet, Hublot, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Richard Mille and TAG Heuer that saw mechanical innovation matched with aesthetic talent, which show that two minds are greater than one.

ARBUTUS X SINGAPOREAN ARTISTS

Specialty mechanical watch brand, Arbutus, founded in the early 1980s in New York City by Albert Reed, then acquired by Jacky Lau from Hong Kong in 1995, commissioned a charity collection of seven hand-painted timepieces from four Singaporean artists: Peter Draw, who holds four Guinness Book of Records in drawing, depicted his beloved Ai cartoon character promoting a message of love; henna tattoo artist, Tiffany Tan aka Lovage, chose to portray orchids; former rag-and-bone man turned abstract artist, Tan Chong Bin, reflected scenes of life in his signature Jackson Pollock-like style; and nail artist, Heng Ying Ying, displayed her fondness for animals. These Arbutus of Passion and Imagination Limited Edition watches went on sale last year for $1,800 (before GST) each at Tangs VivoCity, with proceeds benefitting The Rice Company Limited, which supports arts education for underprivileged children and youth in Singapore, and Nature Society (Singapore), dedicated to conserving and promoting appreciation of Singapore’s flora and fauna.