Our Favorite New Timepieces Are Purely About Pretty
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It’s not just a pretty face—a watch, when made by the best, can be both a work of art and a marvel of scientific innovation. Does that sound a bit hyperbolic? Maybe a skosh. But the world of haute horologerie is a decadent one whose cardinal virtues are brashness, élan, and overstatement. With that in mind, we focus our attention not on the feats of engineering under the hood, but on the ebullient, artful facades up top. For the most part, 2023 has not been a year of new movement introductions or updated calibers, but rather of celebrating the dial. It’s time to give the face, as some watch lovers refer to it, its close-up.
Chanel J12 Cybernetic
Marcel Duchamp would have loved this dial-and-bezel combo, which elevates the mundane (a cluster of pixels) into a bold artistic statement.
Dial: White-varnished pixel motif over black lacquer.
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Patek Philippe Calatrava 4997/200R
Bring skeptics of hypnosis under your power with this Op-art dial of concentric waves in a lambent shade of purple framed by a dazzling diamond-set bezel.
Dial: Purple lacquer embossed with concentric waves pattern. Price upon request.
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Audemars Piguet Code 11.59 Self-Winding
This dial lifts the world’s most misunderstood color to new heights of chicness and va-va-voom, creating the illusion of a spotlight shining directly onto your wrist.
Dial: Smoked beige with guilloché enamel concentric circle pattern. Price upon request. SHOP NOW
Rolex Celebration Oyster Perpetual
Can’t stop, won’t stop! Even if you don’t have anything timely to celebrate, when this OP is on your wrist, parties just seem to break out around you.
Dial: Turquoise with multicolored bubble “Celebration” motif.
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Hermès H08
Float like a papillon and sting like an abeille with this new black-and-yellow iteration of the H08, with its subtle hint of primary color on the dial exploding into the Fauvist feast of the rubber strap.
Dial: Concrete-colored diamondlike carbon coating with yellow indices, second hand, and ring on crystal.
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Oris ProPilot X Kermit
It’s not easy being green (just ask any New York Jets fan), but this shade sure is easy on the eyes.
Dial: Bright green with Kermit the Frog appearing monthly in the date window.
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This story originally appeared in the September 2023 issue of ELLE DECOR. SUBSCRIBE
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