Hublot and Takashi Murakami have unveiled the second timepiece of their collaboration. Featuring the Japanese artists’ signature smiley flower that is iced-out by Hublot, the Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami Sapphire Rainbow is taking vibrant art to the next level.
Safe to say, this was the perfect dose of playfulness and luxe for Hublot to end the year with. Takashi Murakami refreshes his iconic Hublot partnership with a stunning new Classic Fusion, or as they call it – ‘A whirlwind of transparency and colour’. They started 2021 with a blacked-out iteration of the very same piece, and they’re back ending it with a rainbow delight and a serious burst of bling. With this new piece, continuing Murakami’s stride of transposing the Kawaii world into horology, he retains his beloved smiley-faced flower, which is globally recognised as his unofficial watermark.
Hublot debuts the Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami Sapphire Rainbow
What else is new? Hublot’s master technicians have perfected the art of transparency, which shows off both, Takashi’s work as well as the brand’s mechanical marvels underneath. In form, it’s Classic Fusion at its finest. The 45-mm case sapphire crystal cut-case is as impressive as the haute mastery on its dial. Also, a technologically pioneering spec for the brand.
Now here’s the part of the watch I’m most excited to talk about, the dial. That diamond-infused sunflower with such a mischievous smile is three-dimensionally crafted and sits above the sapphire crystal. This is thanks to an ingenious ball-bearing system specially developed by Hublot’s engineers, it allows the petals to spin under the smiley face, bringing Takashi Murakami’s smiling flower to life. With 12 vibrant petals rotating around its face, it creates a polychromatic effect. At first glance, it’s understandably difficult to interpret which precious stones are in the mix here. To break it down for you, it’s a mix of rubies, pink sapphires, amethysts, blue sapphires, tsavorites, yellow and orange sapphires, all adding up to a total of 487 stones. That’s 384 on the petals and 103 on the glass.
Underneath this, rests the heart of the timepiece – The HUB 1214 calibre, that’s self-wound and offers a power reserve of 72 hours. Also, on the case back we see “LIMITED EDITION + ©TM/KK” boldly highlighted. All of this, strapped on with transparent lined rubber. The Hublot Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami Sapphire Rainbow is limited to just 100 pieces, each priced at approximately 3,540,294 Baht.
All images: Courtesy Hublot & Takashi Murakami
The article first appeared on Lifestyle Asia India.
Mikhail Gomes
Features Editor, Lifestyle Asia India & Contributor - Augustman
A watch aficionado, Mikhail also enjoys learning about fine whiskies, and one day hopes to establish his own menswear label. At Lifestyle Asia India, he writes on watches, menswear, auto and tech.
