Hublot celebrates golf and art

Haute horlogerie marque Hublot is taking time off to play, and so we have two new watches that celebrate the diverse fields of golf and graphic art: the Big Bang Unico Golf and the Classic Fusion Aerofusion Chronograph Orlinski

Big Bang Unico Golf

In a world first, Hublot presents the first mechanical golf watch with aperture display. The Swiss watchmaker has joined forces with world #1 golfer Dustin Johnson to unveil a watch that is dedicated to the ultimate precision sport – golf. Hublot has designed, developed, manufactured, and assembled a module to equip its new Unico movement, which has been specifically created for golf. The MHUB1580 movement allows golfers to seamlessly calculate their score while on course. The watch features aperture displays and is ultra-lightweight, providing true sports performance.

The case of the Big Bang Unico Golf is carved from Texalium, an innovative material that is an amalgamation of fibreglass and aluminum. This unique composite gives the watch its lightness, a mere 98 grams.

The Big Bang Unico Golf has the look of a chronograph and has been conceived as a chronograph. Its movement features return-to-zero heart piece cams that ensure the counting mechanism is robust and reliable. The putter-shaped pusher at 2 o’clock activates the mechanism for displaying the number of strokes taken and counts the strokes per hole.

The pusher at 4 o’clock allows the wearer to move on to the next hole by resetting the stroke counter to zero. The counter at 6 o’clock displays the total number of strokes played and is simultaneously updated. The pusher at 8 o’clock is shaped like a tee. This resets the mechanism and sets the counters to zero at the end of the round.

During the round, this button can be locked by rotating it by 45°, thus ensuring that it is not inadvertently activated. The MHUB1580 full-skeleton movement allows the wearer to admire and understand how the timepiece works. The watch comes with two interchangeable wristbands fitted with the One Click system. One is made of white leather sewn on rubber and designed like a golf glove, while the other is made of technical fabric with a Velcro fastener to ensure the watch sits perfectly on the wrist.

Water-resistant to 10 ATM or 100m, the watch boasts a power reserve of 72 hours, and comes with two straps:  Black rubber with white calf strap and Black velcro strap.

Classic Fusion Aerofusion Chronograph Orlinski

Hublot presents a new classic fusion sculpted by Richard Orlinski, the world’s bestselling contemporary French artist. The Swiss watchmaker and Richard Orlinski combine their know-how to create the Classic Fusion Aerofusion Chronograph Orlinski, which brings to life the artist’s graphic universe. The watch features a brand-new design playing with angles and reflections. Ridges and facets on the watch reflect each other, from the case to the bezel, and from the push buttons to the hands.

To celebrate their union, the sculptor and the watch company naturally chose Miami and two special venues right in the heart of the Design District: The Hublot boutique and the Markowicz Fine Art gallery, where the artist’s works are on show. The world’s bestselling contemporary French artist has now joined the Hublot family, alongside other famous names including Maxime Büchi, Lapo Elkann, Pelé, Lang Lang, Bar Refaeli, Usain Bolt, and Dustin Johnson.

Chances are you will have seen Richard Orlinski’s brightly coloured Pop Art-style multi-facetted beasts somewhere before. From his immense “Wild Kong” gorilla sculpture on the Croisette in Cannes and his crocodiles in the sunshine of the Miami Design District, to his 5-metre-tall bear on the snowy pistes of Courchevel.

Richard creates his sculptures by cutting them like diamonds and he never fails to rise to a challenge. In the hands of Richard Orlinski, the Classic Fusion Aerofusion Chronograph is adorned with its iconic facets, 12 of course, like those that punctuate the dial of a watch. The artist has designed a watch on the frontier of vintage and neo-futurist styles, just like his works inspired by the Pop Art movement. Pointing to the future, the hand of the watch becomes a symbolic metaphor for Richard Orlinski: as it never stops turning, it embodies infinity.

The 45-mm work of art is available in two brand-new models, each in a limited edition of 200 pieces: one in titanium and the other in blue ceramic. The Hublot x Richard Orlinski watch’s dial has been cast in sapphire crystal, while the case, crown, bezel, and push buttons also feature the facets. The visionary design of Richard Orlinski presented a major challenge for the Hublot Manufacture, as the three-dimensional fold in the case had to be modelled before it was cut from ceramic and titanium. These two materials feature one of the artist’s iconic signatures: mirror polishing.