HM4 Only Watch
Overview
For the 2011 Only Watch charity auction, under the patronage of HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco, MB&F created an emotionally charged piece in collaboration with Chinese artist, Huang Hankang.
Based on the radical Horological Machine No.4, the HM4 Only Watch features a miniature flying panda bear piloting the machine: a magical synthesis of the fantasy of children’s dreams and cutting-edge haute horlogerie.
About the collaboration
When Huang was asked if he was interested in collaborating with MB&F on the Only Watch project, it only took one glance at HM4 Thunderbolt for him to realise that while this was an artistic medium he had not considered before—or even knew existed—he relished in the challenge and the cause. Huang first imagined and then painted a delightful, carefree panda bear flying free on top of HM4 and MB&F set about transforming Huang’s painting into a horological expression. Huang’s original painting accompanies the HM4 Only Watch.
PAINTING
The HM4 Only Watch was accompanied by the original watercolour that artist Huang Hankang painted to express his message with MB&F's HM4.
FLYING PANDA
The panda was hand-carved and then cast in 18k white gold using the “lost wax” technique. His reins have been micro-engineered to be completely detachable.
PIECE UNIQUE
Only Watch is a biennial charity auction of unique timepieces under the High Patronage of HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco. All proceeds go to medical research on Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD)
Machine in action
One of the elements in Legendre’s drawing is given particular prominence in the HM8 Only Watch. The elephant, situated under the racing-inspired roll bar closest to the minutes disc, is reproduced in three dimensions between the optical prisms. Positioned on a tiny white-gold plinth, the micro-sculpture hand-crafted by Oliver Kuhn is a striking allusion to the majestic beast that occupies large swathes of children’s literature from Kipling to Disney.
THE MACHINE
Blending art & horology
This MB&F piece for Only Watch transports us to a fantasy dream world with a friendly panda piloting a unique space-age HM4 jet. While visiting an art gallery a few years ago, MB&F founder Maximilian Büsser noticed a painting of a panda flying on a rocket that lifted his spirits so much that he bought it. That painting was by Paris-based Chinese artist, Huang Hankang, and for Only Watch, Huang used HM4 as his canvas to convey a childlike liberation of the spirit.
- Material: grade 5 titanium and sapphire with a detachable 18k white gold panda holding gold reins
- Dimensions (without panda): 54 x 52 x 24 mm
- Three-dimensional horological engine developed by MB&F
- Manual winding with two mainspring barrels in parallel
- 311 components / 50 jewels / 72h power reserve
- Hours and minutes on the right dial; power reserve indicator on the left dial
- Separate crowns for time setting and winding
- Five sapphire crystals: 2 for the dials, 2 for the display panels (top and bottom), and 1 for the central case section
- A detachable 18k gold panda and reins on top of Horological Machine No.4 with the signature of the artist, Huang Hankang, on the sapphire glass display panel.
Inspiration
This MB&F piece for Only Watch transports us to a fantasy dream world with a friendly panda piloting a unique space-age HM4 jet.
While we dream throughout our lives, there is one specific dream that children experience more frequently than adults: the ability to fly! It isn’t known why dreams of flight diminish from adolescence; however, it may be that adult imaginations become more constrained as they are rooted in the realities of everyday life. Children with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy suffer from progressively diminished mobility leading to paralysis; however, while their bodies may be trapped, their young spirits can escape in their dreams and imaginations. HM4 Only Watch offers children a flight of fantasy, a reason to smile, and a wild ride through time and space.
