Hublot x Daniel Arsham: Time in Flux
Hublot and artist Daniel Arsham collaborated on the MP-17 Meca-10 Arsham Splash, a 42mm titanium and sapphire watch inspired by a water splash. The watch embodies Hublot’s “Art of Fusion” philosophy, merging high horology with contemporary art.
The Setup
The Hublot MP-17 Arsham Splash isn’t just a watch; it’s a collaboration between mechanics and metaphor. Designed with artist Daniel Arsham, the 42mm titanium and sapphire piece turns the concept of time into a sculpture you can wear.
Hublot’s marketing strategy turns collaboration into cultural capital, using art partnerships to frame innovation as emotion rather than function.
Inspired by the shape of a water splash, it trades symmetry for flow and solidity for transparency. The movement, Hublot’s in-house Meca-10, sits beneath a frosted sapphire bezel that feels less like a case and more like frozen motion.
The result blurs where art ends and watchmaking begins. It’s not about tracking seconds, but about capturing how time feels, fluid, suspended, and always in motion.
The Breakdown
Hublot
Brand Positioning and Identity
Hublot positions the MP-17 Meca-10 Arsham Splash as a fusion of high horology and contemporary art. It continues Hublot’s “Art of Fusion” philosophy, merging technical precision with avant-garde design. The collaboration with Daniel Arsham reinforces Hublot’s identity as the most artistically experimental brand in Swiss watchmaking. It bridges sculpture, engineering, and conceptual art into one collectible timepiece.
Target Segment and Audience
The target audience includes collectors who view watches as wearable art, not just mechanical instruments. This group spans art patrons, design enthusiasts, and avant-garde watch buyers who already collect limited pieces from Richard Mille, MB&F, or De Bethune. Secondary audiences include Arsham’s contemporary art following and Hublot clients drawn to conceptual collaborations that merge art, architecture, and futurism.
Messaging and Storytelling
The messaging revolves around “the fluidity of time.” The narrative uses Arsham’s signature theme of collapsing past and future to explore time as both concept and experience. Hublot frames the piece as a sculpture in motion, blending Arsham’s art of erosion and reimagination with the Meca-10 movement’s mechanical endurance. It communicates artistic evolution rather than product iteration, positioning Hublot as a brand that interprets time philosophically, not just mechanically.
Experience and Journey
The experience Hublot is offering is immersion into an artistic worldview. From boutique presentation to ownership, the MP-17 invites the buyer to see the watch as a fluid object rather than a static luxury good. The journey is not transactional; it’s experiential and emotional. The buyer joins a circle of collectors who own wearable art created by a contemporary artist whose work is displayed in museums and galleries worldwide.
Hublot
Community and Culture Insight
This collaboration taps into a cultural moment where contemporary art, street culture, and luxury intersect. Collectors no longer separate art and function—they want objects that embody both. Arsham’s audience aligns with modern collectors who value creativity, scarcity, and concept over traditional prestige. In a culture obsessed with digital speed, the physical, handcrafted object becomes an act of resistance, and the MP-17 speaks directly to that mindset.
Differentiation and Unique Selling Point
The MP-17 stands apart by redefining what an artistic collaboration can be. It is not a color or logo edition; it is a sculptural reinterpretation of a movement and case architecture. Its frosted sapphire “splash” bezel and organic form transform an engineering platform into a metaphor for time as fluid. The unique selling point is the total synthesis of art, material science, and haute horlogerie, achieved through transparency, tactility, and narrative cohesion.
Design Language
The design language draws from organic geometry and Arsham’s fascination with water’s form and motion. The frosted sapphire bezel mimics the texture of a splash, while internal components remain visible through layers of transparency. The watch avoids symmetry in favor of natural flow, guided by design thinking that merges functionality with conceptual meaning. The visual systemL pale greens, translucent layers, mechanical transparency—extends Hublot’s visual identity into a new medium of expression.
Marketing Pitch
A sculpture you can wear. Limited to 99 pieces, the Hublot MP-17 Meca-10 Arsham Splash transforms mechanical horology into an exploration of time’s fluid nature. Designed by Daniel Arsham, powered by Hublot’s Meca-10 movement, and sculpted from titanium, rubber, and sapphire, it blurs the boundary between art and engineering.
Is It A Winning Pitch?
Is this watchmaking, or brand storytelling disguised as sculpture?
