Hublot’s Classic Fusion Orlinski Bracelet Is a Cut Above
This multifaceted timepiece is the latest novelty to come out of the years-long collaboration with French sculptor Richard Orlinski, of the Hublot Loves Art family.
Wolves, T-rexes and King Kong may seem disparate, but when they are rendered as metres-tall resin sculptures by contemporary artist Richard Orlinski, they are connected by a shared feature — polished crystalline facets, the visual signature of one of France’s Pop Art giants.
In late 2017, Orlinski expanded his repertoire when Hublot unveiled scaled-down artwork of his that tells the time — the brand’s first watch by the member of the Hublot Loves Art family and also a Hublot ambassador. That collaboration has since given rise to a series of intriguing timepieces bearing elements like Hublot’s King Gold and diamond pavé, and always with Orlinski’s iconic cut-gemstone surface executed in fresh and unexpected ways.
The latest in Hublot’s collaboration with Orlinski is four versions of the Classic Fusion Orlinski Bracelet timepiece, featuring a new metallic bracelet. A technical challenge to integrate mechanically and aesthetically to the watch case, the titanium bracelet exhibits remarkable chamfering, H-shaped links offering a subtle reference to Hublot’s brand logo, and mirror-polished facets across its 83 parts.
That theme carries through to the dial, in white or black ceramic, and also to the 40mm polished titanium case, which houses the HUB1100 self-winding movement with a power reserve of 42 hours. Variations include partially pavé-set watches, with the case, bezel and bracelet adorned with brilliant white diamonds totalling 3.79ct.
“As a sculptor, expressing my art on a watch with only a few centimetres of diameter as a canvas was a real challenge. This creation on the entire bracelet made it significantly more complicated for the engineers at the manufacture,” Orlinski says of the Hublot Classic Fusion Orlinski Bracelet timepiece. Small-scale art can indeed create a mighty impression.
