MP-17 Meca-10 Arsham Splash Titanium Sapphire: fluid time by Hublot

Hublot can count on countless brand ambassadors. Some lend their face and popularity to the brand, while others actively participate in the creative process that defines new watches. Among the latter is American artist Daniel Arsham, who has been associated with Hublot since 2023 — someone who truly puts his heart and soul into designing timepieces. The MP-17 Meca-10 Arsham Splash Titanium Sapphire, presented in October in Singapore, is proof of that. A watch that is as much Hublot as it is Arsham; as much mechanics as it is art and design. In short, the synthesis between what the brand aims to communicate and what the artist seeks to express.

This is not the first collaboration between the Manufacture and Arsham. True to his ability to surprise and bend both time and materials to his will, in 2024 the artist designed a pocket watch for Hublot — the Arsham Droplet. Today, his vision arrives on the wrist, and with the MP-17 Meca-10 Arsham Splash Titanium Sapphire, he clearly affirms his desire to translate the indeterminacy and fluidity of time into tangible, sculptural form.

THE ORIGINS OF THE NAME MP-17 MECA-10 ARSHAM SPLASH

As is always best in life, to understand the MP-17 Meca-10 Arsham Splash Titanium Sapphire and its meaning, we should start with its name. MP-17 refers to Hublot’s so-called Manufacture Pieces, a niche within the brand’s collection synonymous with cutting-edge mechanical solutions and daring complications, often expressed through bold design. You can find more information here.  Meca-10 takes us straight to the heart of the movement, which Hublot introduced in 2016 — a calibre renowned for its 10-day power reserve, as detailed [here]. Finally, Splash, Titanium, and Sapphire mark the meeting point between Daniel Arsham’s artistic language and Hublot’s technical mastery.

Sapphire and titanium are among the materials most favored by the Nyon-based Manufacture. Regularly used for both cases and bracelets, they have been refined by Hublot over the years for their strength and lightness. In the MP-17 Meca-10 Arsham Splash Titanium Sapphire, these materials become malleable in the artist’s hands, shaped into a case of complex, unconventional yet unmistakably Hublot design — the defining aesthetic feature of this watch.

MP-17 MECA-10 ARSHAM SPLASH: AESTHETICS

The case is round, measuring 42 mm in diameter, yet it appears much more compact on the wrist. This visual impression is likely due to the bezel framing the transparent dial — a bezel unlike any we are used to seeing. Its irregular contour opens the sapphire crystal in a form reminiscent of a splash, a drop of water in which time itself makes a ripple through its fluidity. The Splash that completes the name of the timepiece.

Beyond the sapphire crystal bezel — laser-cut with a frosted finish for a richly textured effect — it is the dial that truly defines this watch’s character. The flange follows the edges of the “drop,” irregular yet harmonious, an apparent contradiction to the circular motion of the hands. And yet, time remains cleanly legible, as in a classic watch — something this Hublot most certainly is not.

This clarity is owed to the hour and minute hands and hour markers set around the rhodium-plated, microblasted rehaut. There is no date display, only a 10-day power reserve indicator at 3 o’clock and a small seconds counter at 9 o’clock, which seems to float above the large balance wheel visible just below at 8 o’clock. The hands, indices, and power reserve indicator are all filled with luminescent material in Arsham’s signature green hue — a sea green consistent with the philosophy of both artist and watch.

HEART HUBLOT, MIND ARSHAM

As mentioned above, the mechanical heart of the MP-17 Meca-10 Arsham Splash Titanium Sapphire is the Meca-10 movement, here in the form of the skeletonized HUB1205 manual-winding calibre, finished in grey PVD. The features enabling its 240-hour power reserve have been discussed in detail in our previous article, but suffice it to say that it beats at 21,600 vibrations per hour and remains one of Hublot’s best-balanced calibres in terms of power reserve, precision, and robustness.

It is housed within a polished and microblasted titanium case, whose sapphire crystal caseback mirrors the same fluid, organic contours found on the dial side. The sculptural case measures 15.35 mm thick — not slim by any means, yet wrist comfort should remain high thanks to the absence of traditional lugs. The black rubber strap, embossed with Daniel Arsham’s monogram, is integrated directly into the case. The monogram reappears on the dial, replacing the 12 o’clock marker. The watch is secured by a titanium folding clasp — though one might argue that a pin buckle could have been more suitable for such a substantial case. A wrist test will tell.

As expected from a creation of this caliber, the MP-17 Meca-10 Arsham Splash Titanium Sapphire is produced in a limited edition of just 99 pieces, priced at € 69,000. If, in 2016, Daniel Arsham described his art by saying “my work illustrates the collapse of time,” then with the dial of the MP-17 Meca-10 Arsham Splash Titanium Sapphire, he has given that collapse a visible, wearable form.

Davide Passoni