OnlyWatch 2021 - My Top 5 Picks

This year sees the return of biennial charity auction, OnlyWatch, where some of the major names in horology come together to produce a collection of totally unique, one-off timepieces which are auctioned for charity. This year, OnlyWatch 2021 marks the 9^th edition of the auction, and there are 53 individual lots with 54 brands contributing.

OnlyWatch was founded by Luc Pettavino in 2005 as a charity auction raising funds to support research into Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy in memory of Luc’s son Paul, who sadly passed away in 2016. Since its inception, OnlyWatch has raised more than 70 million Euros, and increased awareness for the condition, which manifests as progressive weakening of the muscles leading to heart and respiratory problems. For more information on Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy or OnlyWatch, I have provided some links at the end of this article.

My Top 5 Picks from OnlyWatch 2021

With 53 lots for OnlyWatch 2021, I decided for this piece to select my top 5 stand-out lots and look at them in a little more detail; I have also provided links to each lot at the end of the article as well so if there is one which piques your curiosity you can go straight to the page and check it out for yourself. For now, here are my stand-out picks.

Ludovic Ballouard Half Time “Vinyl 33 Tours”

Ludovic Ballouard is one of my favourite independent watchmakers, and an absolute master of his craft. The two watches for which he is known – the Upside Down and Half Time – are completely unique in how they display the time and are testament to his creativity; the recurring message is always a reminder to live in the moment.

For this OnlyWatch piece, he has converted the dial of the watch and the two rotating discs which form the hours into a vinyl record (with a colourful OnlyWatch design in the centre of the record), and playfully adapted the retrograde minutes hand at the bottom of the dial into a stylus that moves across the record over the course of the hour, before flicking back to the edge of the vinyl each hour.

If I had to pick one lot from the collection as my favourite, this would be it. The first time I ever saw one of Ludovic Ballouard’s watches it put a smile on my face, and this piece was exactly the same. The simple and yet brilliant twist to turn the regular Half Time watch into a record, and then using the retrograde seconds hand as a stylus, I think is a wonderful idea, and above all acts a reminder that watchmaking can – and should – be fun!

Ludovic Ballouard Half Time “Vinyl 33 Tours”, photos - OnlyWatch

Ludovic Ballouard Onlywatch 2021 caseback

MB&F HM10 Panda for OnlyWatch 2021

The first Horological Machine 10, the Bulldog, was released at the beginning of 2020. I really enjoy what Max Büsser and the team at MB&F do, and it will come as no surprise to those who know me that this unique HM10 Panda makes my top 5!

The additional touches on this piece include some panda ears (!) fitted to the top of the sapphire dome containing the time display, as well as a little tail at the back of the case – which is of course done in black and white. The black and white is done in a lacquer, which warranted slightly changing the case from being constructed in titanium to being made from stainless steel as well. The piece will be paired with a black and white strap as well.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t quite ready for the OnlyWatch press release, and so for the time being I’ve added a photo of the original HM10 piece below alongside an impression of the final piece by Instagram artist @OneHourWatch

The original HM10 Bulldog, photo - MB&F

@OneHourWatch impression of the HM10 Panda, photo - OnlyWatch

Kari Voutilainen x De Bethune Kind of Magic

One of, if not my favourite watch from OnlyWatch 2019 was the Urwerk x De Bethune collaboration piece, and it excites me to see that De Bethune has once again contributed a collaboration watch for OnlyWatch 2021 – this time with none other than Kari Voutilainen.

There haven’t been any photos of this release just yet, however looking at both the description of the watch and what it represents to its makers is enough for me to want to showcase it in my top 5.

This piece is a fusion of two different watchmakers and their styles, with two completely different dials – one on either side of the case, and each showcasing the watchmaking style of Voutilainen and Denis Flageollet of De Bethune respectively. The two watchmakers shared the same mentor early in their careers, Charles Meylan, with Voutilainen commenting that “Our mentor Charles Meylan would doubtless be very proud of us…”

On one side, we will find a celebration of the mechanic aspect of the watch, a new calibre with dual time displays on the front and back with a deadbeat seconds complication as well. This will offer a new way of displaying the hour in the centre of the dial with the balance, and the minute display around the edge of the dial. The other will offer an entirely new way of displaying the time – the OnlyWatch website describes it as “hands superimposed where we do not expect them, equal angles between the hands when they should evolve…” and of course, we can expect some of the exceptional guilloché dialwork for which Kari Voutilainen is so very well known.

I for one cannot wait to see what this piece entails!

Baltic Pulsometer Chronograph Monopusher 1/1

This year is the first time that Baltic have contributed a piece to OnlyWatch, and for me they have nailed it. Their piece is an absolutely spectacular 36mm monopusher chronograph, which is built around a vintage Venus 150 chronograph movement from the 1940s. Having been ticking away for the last 80 years or so, the movement has undergone some TLC in Switzerland to ensure it continues for another 80 years or more for the new owner.

I really like the idea of incorporating a real piece of history into the watch, I think it serves to really make for a one-off, special piece.

Beyond the movement, this watch looks nothing short of magnificent. A rich, black dial is adorned with gold Breguet numerals and leaf hands, subdials placed at 3 and 9 o’clock, with a pulsometer scale around the periphery of the dial – another nod towards the history of watchmaking, when the pulsometer scale was used to measure individuals’ heart rates. This was done by starting the chronograph and counting for 30 beats of the person’s pulse. Stopping the chronograph at this point will indicate their heart rate per minute.

There will be quite the battle for this piece on auction day, I am sure!

Baltic Pulsometer Chronograph Monopusher, photos - OnlyWatch

F.P. Journe x Francis Ford Coppola FFC Blue

One of the biggest talking points of this year’s collection is F.P. Journe’s contribution, one of the most unusual watches I can remember seeing! Of course, watches normally indicate the time through the use of hands, however this particular watch takes this to a new level…

According to the OnlyWatch website, Journe recounts “This watch was born in 2012 while having dinner at Francis Ford Coppola’s house in the Napa Valley. He asked me if it could be possible to tell time with a hand in a watch. I replied that the idea was interesting and required thinking about it. But how to display 12 hours with 5 fingers? It was not an easy matter and this complex challenge inspired and motivated me. Once I figured it out, Francis immediately sent the sketches for the fingers positions. After more than 2 years, I could finally focus on “Fecit”. After 7 years of development, I am proud to present the FFC prototype”.

As time advances, the number of fingers shown on the hand indicate the hours, with the mechanism of the watch instantaneously hiding or showing the various fingers to indicate the hours in accordance with the key below. The design of the fingers themselves is inspired from a mechanical hand created by Ambroise Paré (1509-1590), a pioneer of battlefield surgery techniques and widely considered a ‘father’ of pathology and surgery

I’m really looking forward to seeing some videos of this in action – it’s certainly a strange look but you simply have to marvel at the genius of Journe to bring it to life.

F.P Journe x Francis Ford Coppola FFC Blue, photo - F.P.Journe

How the hours work, photo - OnlyWatch

The OnlyWatch 2021 Collection

In addition to these 5 picks which stand out to me, there are another 48 lots in the collection. Below I have listed out each of the contributors and provided the links to their lot listing, for anyone interested in exploring the OnlyWatch 2021 collection further.

Patek Philippe Grandmaster Chime 6300A for OnlyWatch 2019

In Summary

When I first discovered OnlyWatch in 2019, I was super excited to learn more about it, and I remember visiting the collection when it went on the world tour before the auction. Indeed, this was when I was able to try what went on to become the single most expensive wristwatch sold at auction – Patek Philippe’s Grandmaster Chime 6300A-001 – which ultimately sold for CHF 31 million (plus fees!). What an experience!

Unfortunately, the world tour for OnlyWatch 2021 is not visiting London, so I won’t be able to see these watches in person, but I would massively encourage anybody in either Monaco, Dubai, Tokyo, Singapore, Hong Kong or Geneva reading this to go along and check them out!

For any questions, please get in touch via our Contact page, or via our Instagram.

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For more information on Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy or other Muscular Dystrophy conditions, visit www.musculardystrophyuk.org, or www.mda.org

For more information on OnlyWatch, visit www.onlywatch.com

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OnlyWatch 2021 – My Top 5 Picks