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This Titanium Sports Watch Used a Surprising Inspiration to Achieve Its Unique Look

Bulgari invited a world-renowned sculptor and visual artist to decorate the Octo Finissimo.

Close-up of a luxury watch with a textured metal bracelet and case. The metal surface features a distinctive pattern of intersecting lines and scratches, giving it a unique, rugged appearance. The watch has a brushed bezel and a crown with a black accent. The background is a gradient blue.Bulgari
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By Brad Lanphear

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When Bulgari introduced the Octo Finissimo in 2017, it broke the record for the world’s thinnest automatic watch.

Since then, that record has since been broken multiple times over — mostly by Bulgari itself — and the brand has kept the angular titanium sports watch fresh by inviting esteemed artists to use it as a canvas.

Titanium wristwatch with a brushed metal finish and an octagonal bezel. The watch face is gradient, transitioning from light at the top to dark at the bottom, with minimalistic black hour and minute hands and a small seconds subdial near the 7 o'clock position. The metal bracelet features a geometric, textured pattern.
A series of renowned artists and architects have decorated the Octo Finissimo.
Bulgari

Through a series of limited-edition collaborations, the Octo Finissimo has been reimagined by some of the world’s most respected sculptors, painters and architects.

Each has layered their vision on top of Bulgari designer Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani’s angular, multi-tiered, impossibly thin case and bracelet.

Lee Ufan, a Korean sculptor and painter known for contrasting the beauty of natural and man-made objects, is the latest contributor to the ongoing wearable art project.

Titanium wristwatch with a reflective, dark gradient dial and minimalistic design, featuring a silver metal bracelet, worn on a wrist with a black suit sleeve.
The Octo Finissimo has a 40mm case with angled lugs that hug the wrist.
Bulgari

One of Ufan’s signature motifs is blending straight lines, perfect shapes, flat surfaces and uniform colors — symbols of human creation — with the chaotic randomness that occurs in nature.

For his crack at the Octo Finissimo, the former is represented on the dial, while the latter blankets the case and bracelet.

Floating serenity

Ufan’s dial creates the impression of the hands floating on a perfectly flat mirrored surface with some large, unseen object vaguely reflected or obscuring the light.

Titanium wristwatch with a textured, scratched metal bracelet and case. The watch face is gradient black to gray with minimalistic black hour, minute, and small second hands, and no numerals or markers. The bezel is brushed metal with an octagonal shape. The crown has a black center.
The skeletonized hour and minute hands and the isolated small seconds hand appear to float on a mirrored surface.
Bulgari

The Octo Finissimo’s signature faceted dauphine hands, with cut-outs in the hour and minute hands, and the small seconds hand off by itself, appear to float over a still pond on a foggy morning.

However, the dial is not reflective. It is painted to create that illusion.

Stigliani’s perfectly round bezel design, framed by inner and outer octagons, furthers the man-made half of Ufan’s motif. This hints at why the visual artist was chosen for this project.

Back view of a Bulgari Octo wristwatch showcasing its intricate mechanical movement. The watch features a titanium case with visible screws and a transparent case back revealing the inner workings, including gears and jewels. The text "LIMITED EDITION OF 150," "BVLGARI," "Pt 950," "THIRTY-ONE (31) JEWELS," "SWISS MADE," "SWISS 3 ATM," and "Titan" are engraved on the case and movement. The watch has a metal bracelet and a signature on the movement plate.
The Bulgari caliber BVL 138 automatic movement is visible through a sapphire crystal exhibition caseback.
Bulgari

The reverse side of the dial displays more splendor of human engineering, with Bulgari’s caliber BVL 138 automatic movement visible through a sapphire crystal exhibition caseback featuring Ufan’s signature.

The 2.23mm-thick movement is decorated with Geneva stripes, has a platinum rotor and a 60-hour power reserve.

A hand-finished case

Even without a celebrated artist’s touch, this Octo Finissimo is noteworthy because the case and bracelet are hand-finished with randomly applied scoring.

Metal watch bracelet with a brushed and textured finish, featuring the engraved brand name "BVLGARI" on one of the links. The bracelet is worn on a wrist.
The Octo Finissimo Lee Ufan Special Edition comes on a hand-finished titanium bracelet with a center clasp.
Bulgari

Ironically, only human hands can replicate the seemingly infinite randomness of nature seen on weathered rocks and the surface of frozen water.

The interwoven network of hand-cut grooves resembles a frozen pond that has cracked and frozen over countless times.

As a result, every watch in the 150-piece limited edition production is completely unique.

Close-up of a metallic, faceted surface with sharp edges and a reflective finish, showing fine linear textures and scratches on the darker areas. The image highlights the contrast between polished and rough sections.
The scored lines are layered on top of each other, cut into the titanium surface.
Bulgari

Bulgari’s titanium sports watch remains mind-blowingly thin even in its standard guise. That starting point, combined with the beautiful architecture of the case and bracelet, continues to be an inspirational canvas for gifted artists.

The Octo Finissimo Lee Ufan Special Edition is a museum-quality piece of art that can be worn on the wrist and costs about the same as trying to buy a piece at the MET.

Availability and price

The Bulgari Octo Finissimo Lee Ufan Special Edition is available exclusively through authorized Bulgari dealers for $19,900.

It is a limited edition of 150 pieces.

Titanium wristwatch with a textured, scratched metal bracelet and case. The watch face is a gradient from light gray at the top to black at the bottom, featuring minimalist black hour, minute, and small second hands without any numerals or markers. The bezel is smooth and polished, contrasting with the rough texture of the bracelet and case.Bulgari

Bulgari Octo Finissimo Lee Ufan Special Edition

Specs

Case Size 40mm
Movement Bulgari caliber BLV 138 automatic
Water Resistance 30m
About the Author: Brad Lanphear is an associate editor at Gear Patrol covering watches and style. Before joining the publication, he previously wrote for Heddels and Men’s Health. Now, he’s on a never-ending quest to find the perfect pair of Japanese denim.

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