View the watches from Only Watch 2021 in Singapore before they're auctioned for charity
The full suite of watches for the biennial charity auction are now on display at Malmaison by The Hour Glass from now until Wednesday, October 20. We recap some of our favourites.
The biennial Only Watch charity auction is almost upon us. Ahead of the live auction in Geneva on November 6, the entire suite of watches — totalling 53 lots from watchmaking stalwarts and ascendant manufacturers alike — have been on a world tour to drum up publicity. The latest stop is in Singapore, at Malmaison by The Hour Glass, where the watches will be on display until October 20.
The response has been so overwhelming that online reservations to view the collection have been completely snapped up; walk-in visitors are still welcome at the boutique, subject to safe-distancing requirements.
There's also Boucheron's dazzling high jewellery watch, the Ajourée Masy le Caméléon. This sinuous creation is all curves and precious stones; in real-life, the chameleon's gemmed body appears to float off the face of the watch, as if suspended by its white gold vines.
And we'd be remiss if we didn't mention MB&F's HM10 Panda. It's a completely reworked version of the brand's Bulldog watch, now transformed into a rotund panda — complete with two black aluminium time-display domes for 'eyes', two black titanium 'ears', and a ceramic tail made of Grade 5 silicon nitride.
The panda wasn't just a convenient mascot for MB&F's unique watch. As Duchenne muscular dystrophy is largely a disease that affects young boys, Maximilian Büsser tried to think of a creation that would be meaningful both to himself and to the people his work would benefit. "My little teddy bear, when I was a kid, was a panda," said Büsser. "And when I think of childhood, it's something I go to."
The Only Watch exhibition takes place from now until October 20 at Malmaison by The Hour Glass. The watches will return to Geneva after a stop in Hong Kong, and will be auctioned off on November 6.
