Since 2016, the Hublot x Sang Bleu collaboration has featured the revolutionary work of typographer, tattooist, and artist Maxime Plescia-Buchi, who has imprinted his distinctive three-dimensional geometric designs onto Hublot watches. From the introduction of the Big Bang in 2016 to the Spirit of Big Bang in 2023, 2024 marks one other milestone yr for this partnership.
The Spirit of Big Bang retains its 42mm diameter and iconic barrel form whereas presenting a distinct aesthetic end. Despite its daring proportions and assertive form, the watch presents glorious ergonomics, becoming comfortably on any wrist, be it female or masculine. The motion stays unchanged; it options the HUB4700, a skeletonized automated chronograph with a date show at 4:30, a 50-hour energy reserve, and an oscillating weight reimagined in Sang Bleu’s distinctive type.
The design continues to play with shapes and buildings, with Sang Bleu’s signature incisions, angles, and sides bringing to life hexagons, rhombuses, and triangles that redefine the watch’s type and quantity. The transition to sapphire permits these components to tackle new dimensions, unveiling a contemporary persona by way of the fabric’s transparency.
The use of sapphire extends from the dial to the case and bezel, intensifying the natural essence of the watch’s design. The intricate design and demanding geometry impressed by Plescia-Buchi’s polygonal tattoo artwork have pushed Hublot to advance its sapphire machining capabilities. The transparency of the sapphire accentuates the purity of the Sang Bleu design, which emerges sharp and structured, expressing a minimalist type that’s visually gentle and cozy to put on. Sapphire’s problem lies in its demanding nature; it requires flawless ending as a consequence of its whole transparency.
Through 3D machining and over 100 hours of labour, the Spirit of Big Bang Sapphire Sang Bleu achieves hardness and scratch resistance almost equal to that of a diamond, scoring 9 on the Mohs scale, just under diamonds at 10. The few components not rendered in clear sapphire, such because the crown, push buttons, case screws, the six H-shaped screws on the bezel, and the folding clasp, are crafted from titanium, alongside the parts of the motion.
This unique timepiece is out there in a restricted run of 100 items, making the Spirit of Big Bang Sapphire Sang Bleu a prized collector’s merchandise for aficionados and connoisseurs of distinctive horological artwork.