In a new collaboration between Hublot and Takashi Murakami, thirteen new NFTs and thirteen unique timepieces feature the iconic smiling flower that is central to the Japanese artist’s work.
“Our partnership with Takashi Murakami is allowing us to construct a history that interlinks all the works we have released with Takashi, both digital pieces and the watches themselves. Faithful to its history, Hublot is once again first, unique and different in how it rewards its collectors, providing them with privileged access to both ownership of and trade in unique artistic pieces. Hublot Loves Art!” RICARDO GUADALUPE HUBLOT CEO
“When my collaboration with Hublot was announced, we made it known that we would be adopting new forms of artistic expression. After creating all the timepieces together, as well as the digital works of art, we are now imagining new ways of accessing contemporary art.” TAKASHI MURAKAMI
At an exclusive event held on February 2nd at the Glass House in New York, Hublot and Takashi Murakami announced their fourth art project together: the launch of thirteen new NFTs and thirteen unique watches. This announcement is a continuation of past projects, rewarding early watch buyers and first NFT collectors with an exclusive approach.
Thirteen unique NFTs are inspired by Japanese video games and games. a 1970s television and Takashi Murakami All Blacks Classic Fusion, the first collaboration between the Swiss watchmaker and Takashi Murakami, which was launched in January 2021. These NFTs are associated with a limited run of 13 new and unique Classic Fusion watches that will be watches and amps; Miracles of 2023 in Geneva. Twelve of these watches will be available exclusively online at hublot.com, accessible only to owners of at least one of the 324 NFTs released in April 2022 as part of the third collaboration between Hublot and Takashi Murakami.
These 324 NFTs were initially offered to owners of one of two Hublot x Takashi Murakami watch models (Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami All Black & Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami Sapphire Rainbow), before being traded on the NFT decentralized trading platform, OpenSea. The time between the announcement of the project in New York in February 2023 and the start of sales in early April 2023 in Geneva will allow any collector interested in one of the new watches one of the NFTs that available on OpenSea to collect. Each buyer lucky enough to purchase one of the 12 new special watches will receive a special matching NFT.
Hublot and Takashi Murakami take the watch as a work of art to a new level, combining the art of precision watchmaking with digital art. The thirteenth watch in the collection presented in New York is the Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami Black Ceramic Rainbow and it is also a masterpiece. Inspired by two previously released works, this watch reinterprets Takashi Murakami’s iconic logo: the smiling flower. Here, 12 petals form a perfect gradation of ruby, sapphire, amethyst, tsavorite and topaz. Thanks to a sophisticated ball-bearing system developed by Hublot engineers, the petals rotate around their axis with each movement, creating a dizzying spectacle of color. The dynamic effect of the petals creates a striking effect against the 45mm black ceramic case. The center of the smiling flower is placed on the sapphire crystal to create a three-dimensional effect.
Twelve other references, will be available for purchase by NFT holders on a dedicated e-commerce platform, resemble the main flower and represent one of the petals. Twelve references to twelve dials and twelve NFTs.
The heart of the watch is driven by the manufacturer’s Unico caliber, a unique movement housed in a unique classic fusion design. This is the third timepiece collaboration between Hublot and a Japanese artist. This release is a testament to the incredible cumulative capabilities of this partnership.
As part of the second phase, collectors will have a one-year opportunity to purchase up to twelve NFTs on the OpenSea platform. In April 2024, at the end of this period, the only collectors who managed to collect these 12 new NFTs will have the opportunity to purchase the thirteenth and most sought-after watch: the Classic Fusion Takashi Murakami Black Ceramic Rainbow. If no one manages to collect all twelve NFTs, Hublot will sell the watch to raise money for charity.