Berlin, February 2024. On the eve of the Depeche Mode concert, meeting with Martin Gore and Dave Gahan, the group’s leaders, to discover their new Hublot watch. “The fourth model of a collaboration that has lasted for fourteen years,” specifies Ricardo Guadalupe.
The CEO of Hublot deciphers the process of creating this Spirit of Big Bang Depeche Mode reference: “In homage to the album and the tour Memento Mori (remember that you are going to die, in Latin), death is symbolized in the dial by a skull while the passing of time is represented by an hourglass. Tiny black ceramic balls flow from the skull, moved according to the movements of the wrist.” This creation, intended to provoke reflection on the transience of life, also illustrates the dark universe of the British group. “From that we saw the first sketches of the watch, we appreciated this proposal”, says Martin Gore. The musician is all the more invested in this collaboration as it defends charitable works. In 2024, part of the funds collected will be transferred to the Conservation Collective, which aims to preserve natural environments.
While not all brand ambassador artists support causes, they generally have in common that they are sensitive to the watchmaking world. Like the American guitarist John Mayer. With Audemars Piguet, he designed a Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar with a contemporary design to evoke timelessness, a theme that links timepieces and scores. Another example, at Richard Mille: in order to create the watch that bears his name, singer Pharrell Williams drew inspiration from his childhood memories. The dial of the RM 52-05 illustrates his personal vision of the Earth from Mars.
However, collaboration does not always involve the creation of a watch. Lenny Kravitz has undoubtedly become the new ambassador of Jaeger-LeCoultre because he has been passionate about watchmaking since childhood, just like the French DJ The Avener, who accompanies the Highlife collection by Frederique Constant. Woodkid’s commitment to Vacheron Constantin concerns an exclusive composition by the French artist, an interpretation of the mechanical tempo of a watch from the manufacture.
For its part, Rolex has been involved in the world of music for more than half a century, through its Perpetual Arts Initiative, as well as with the Rolex Artistic Mentorship Program. The brand supports four of the greatest opera houses in the world – London, Milan, New York and Paris – as well as flagships of classical music and virtuoso musicians, such as the Franco-Swiss tenor Benjamin Bernheim.
In their diverse approaches, these watchmaking houses, patrons of artists, understand music as a universal heritage that must resonate with the times, as well as perpetuate.
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