Swatch Expands their Art Watch Lineup with a New Guggenheim Collaboration

Few watch brands enjoy the instant brand recognition of Swatch, especially non-luxury brands. Sure, Swatch has its haters—though I’ve always found said haters unimaginative and lacking in whimsy—but the fact that their social cache and cultural relevance has stayed steady for decades is impressive. A self-proclaimed horology superfan could argue that there is nothing mechanically impressive about the brand’s offerings, but that misses the point of Swatch entirely; after all, fashion is not a dirty word. 

All of this sounds like vindictive talk from a Swatch sympathizer, but really, it comes from a place of genuine admiration for the brand’s ability to stick to their guns, both aesthetically and from a business standpoint. Even with recent splashy collab offerings like the Omega MoonSwatch line, they’ve managed to stay affordable, accessible, and above all, collectable. 

Swatch is no stranger to collaborations with museums and artists, but even so, the new Guggenheim Collection promises some snazzy new wrist candy for fine art enthusiasts. Inspired by the works of Edgar Degas, Paul Klee, Claude Monet, and Jackson Pollock, and created in tandem with the Guggenheim New York and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice, the line is just the latest entry in Swatch’s long-standing relationship with the fine art world. Four watches are available from the collection: two feature 34mm biosourced material cases, while the other two measure in at 41mm. Biosourced materials make appearances in the dial and “glass” on the watches as well, with each sporting 30 meters of water resistance and transparent straps with multi-color printing. 

The designs, of course, are based on works by the above listed artists. Reference SO28Z131, based on Degas’s Dancers in Green and Yellow (1903), features a dial that focuses on the feet of one of the eponymous ballerinas, whereas the strap depicts the dancers’ full forms. The colorway is predominantly pink, green, and yellow, with yellow hour and minute hands and indices, and a white seconds hand for legibility. 

References SO29Z150 and SO29Z150-6000 draw from Monet’s 1908 masterpiece The Palazzo Ducale, Seen from San Giorgio Maggiore, and features the blue and pink cityscape of Venice in the impressionist’s iconic brushstrokes, with blue and white hour and minute hands, blue indices, and an orange seconds hand. The dial additionally glows orange when exposed to UV light. Reference SO28Z703 wears tones of orange, blue, and yellow, as it depicts Klee’s The Bavarian Don Giovanni (1919). Bits of text and sharp geometric lines complement the yellow hands and indice-less dial. 

 

Finally, reference SUOZ366 showcases a snapshot of Pollock’s Alchemy (1947) in all its Abstract Expressionist glory. Paint splatters over canvas appear on the dial, case, and strap, and the white hour and minute hands and orange seconds hand almost disappear into the colorful frenzy. All of the watches feature a double-length seconds hand as a nod to their shared artistic histories. 

While nothing about the new Swatch x Guggenheim collection lights the world on fire, it is a charming continuation of the traits that have allowed the brand to stay relevant and iconic, even in the world of smart watches and screens. Isn’t that something every watch enthusiast can celebrate?

The Swatch x Guggenheim Collection is available online and in Swatch stores. The Monet and Pollock models retail for USD $115, while the Degas and Klee pieces retail for $105. Swatch

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