What do you do when you're an artist fascinated with the past, present and future? You poetically merge all three to fuel your art. New York-based artist Daniel Arsham is celebrated for crafting modern-looking artifacts or figures that appear eroded, mimicking the effect of casts being burried for centuries. Future relics, if you will. Given his penchant for time, it makes sense that his next project will involve a watch brand like Hublot. The matrimony between his artistic perspective and Hublot's technical expertise yields something that feels modern and otherworldly, the Arsham Droplet.
The Arsham Droplet reimagines the classic pocket watch by building on antique forms using the latest production methods and materials. These updates challenge watchmaking norms, fashioning a timepiece that looks straight out of Ex Machina. Drawing inspiration from nature's water elements, the Arsham Droplet employs titanium, rubber, and sapphire crystal to create a tactile experience that feels like whatever the antithesis of grasping water is.
True to the concept of fluidity, the Arsham Droplet can be shown off in more ways than one. As a necklace to a pocket watch, or displayed as a statement piece on its titanium and mineral glass table stand, Hublot’s patented double "one-click" system ensures seamless attachment.
A timepiece without a heart is merely a shell and the Arsham Droplet comes alive with Hublot's Meca-10 manufacture movement. It flaunts an impressive 10-day power reserve shielded by two domed teardrop-shaped sapphire crystals measuring 73.2mm in length and 52.6 mm in width. Fortified with a titanium case and a custom Arsham green rubber bumper, it's double encased with 17 O-ring seals to ensure nothing contaminates the quiet and intimate environment of the calibre. Featuring Hublot's signature H-shaped screws, the pocket watch bears a stamp of the artist's monogram on its crystal surface. Adding to the Arsham Droplet's theme, it has a water resistance of 30m, impressive for a pocket watch this intricate.
Given the complicated construction of the Arsham Droplet, it's no surprise it's limited to just 99 pieces world-wide.
If you're anything like me—an adult almost in his mid-30s who still plays Pokémon (the actual Nintendo Switch series; not that Pokémon GO nonsense)—this would probably tap into the very recesses where your inner child is buried. Tiffany & Co.'s latest collaboration with Daniel Arsham of Arsham Studio is a Pokémon-themed capsule collection. And it's quite a stellar one at that.
Now, there have been a plethora of Pokémon team-ups in the past couple of years. Tiffany & Co. isn't even the first jewellery-themed collaboration—a partnership with Tom Wood was released early last month, which saw a number of Pikachu charms on bracelets and necklaces. What sets Tiffany's effort apart is Arsham's interpretation of familiar Pokémon characters that has been part of the artist's oeuvre.
The Tiffany & Arsham Studio & Pokémon capsule collection continues Arsham's exploration of his "Future Relics" series. Treating his creations as though they're archaeological finds, the works are typically crafted to look aged and somewhat destroyed by time. And in the case of Pokémon characters—a treatment he debuted in his Japan exhibition, A Ripple in Time—they feature the reveal of a crystalline exoskeleton at various parts of each figure.
Amping up the exploration further, the Tiffany & Arsham Studio & Pokémon capsule collection replaces the crystalline treatment with diamonds. That means, all of the six Pokémon characters chosen for this collaboration—Charmander, Squirtle, Jigglypuff, Cubone, Mew and of course, Pikachu—have been crafted with diamond accents. The main collection is made from oxidised sterling silver to give a distinct worn out look and works beautifully to highlight the diamond accents. Two different iterations of Pikachu pendants—a small standing figure and a larger sitting one—are specially cast in yellow gold as a play on the emblematic character's yellow fur.
If you're already eyeing the Tiffany Blue Pokéball, that's only exclusive to the yellow gold Pikachu necklaces. The rest of the capsule collection comes packaged in a Tiffany & Arsham Studio & Pokémon Blue box.
But here's the kicker: this isn't a global release. The entire capsule collection will only be available at the Tiffany & Co. Landmark in New York City, Omotesando store in Tokyo and Tiffany.com in North America and Japan. Enrolment for online purchases in the US opens on 29 November 2023 at 9am EST and closes on 30 November 2023 at 9pm EST, with notifications of the outcomes to be released on 1 December 2023.
Time to renew those long-lost friendships in the US and Japan, folks.
