Calling all horology fans, Dubai Watch Week is back for its fourth year, and is being touted as its biggest yet. The event is open to everyone, free to attend and promises masterclasses, workshops and interactive session on all things timekeeping. Some of the industry's top names will also be in Dubai for the four-day festival, which starts on Wednesday.
A curated collection of the world's best watches will be on display at the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Geneve travelling exhibition, and anyone interested in second-hand timepieces can get a free evaluation at the Watchbox Lounge. For Hind Seddiqi, director general of Dubai Watch Week, the event is geared towards aficianados, enthusiasts and novices.
“Open to all, Dubai Watch Week not only introduces the general public to the watch industry, but we also add value to the seasoned watch enthusiast by giving them access to a more exclusive level of detail through programmes such as the Creative Hub,” she says. “There are so many reasons to come to Dubai Watch Week that it’s hard to pinpoint one, but it’s important to highlight that, as a non-commercial event, the visitor experience is at the heart of what we do – and anyone attending will be able to walk away with an unrivalled understanding of the watch industry.”
Even so, here are five reasons to go.
1. Be the first to see a new timepiece
Be one of the first people in the region to see the newest watch collection from Chopard. Launched on October 1, the Alpine Eagle Collection will be shown in the Middle East for the first time at Dubai Watch Week. Visitors can explore the collection via an interactive exhibition that will span 485 square metres.
Inspired by Chopard's connection with nature and the beauty of the Swiss Alps, the watch is a modern reinterpretation of St Moritz, the very first watch created by Karl-Friedrich Scheufele, co-president of the brand. Boasting a Chopard chronometer-certified movement, the Alpine Eagle highlights the Swiss watchmaker's commitment to protecting the Alpine environment and its association with Eagle Wings Foundation, an organisation dedicated to reintroducing the golden eagle to its natural habitat.
2. Take part in a watchmaking masterclass
There will be a number of watchmaking workshops running throughout Dubai Watch Week. We are most excited about the one hosted by Ulysse Nardin, the luxury Swiss brand known for its connection to the ocean. Hosted by David Flecchia, head of watchmaking training and workshops at the horology house, watch enthusiasts will be able to get hands-on with watchmaking tools and find out more about the use of silicium in watchmaking.
3. See the Oscars of watches
The Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Geneve is a bit like the Oscars of watchmaking. The annual award ceremony recognises the very best in horology with awards for innovation, mechanical exception and complications. The ceremony took place in Geneva on November 7, and the travelling exhibition of shortlisted timepieces will be in the UAE as part of Dubai Watch Week. Top honours this year went to Audemars Piguet for its Royal Oak Selfwinding Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin watch. Other notable timepieces to receive accolades were the MB&F Legacy machine FlyingT, which scooped best Ladies Complication, and the Hermes Arceau Le'Heure de la Lune, which was deemed best calendar and astronomy watch. The jewellery watch prize went to Bvlgari's Serpenti Misteriosi Romani and Genus took the top spot for mechanical exceptions with its GNS1.2.
4. Hit up the Horology forum
Did you know that the world's most complicated pocket watch took nine years from research and development stage to production? Or that Geneva's Jet d'eau came from the consequence of hundreds of the city's watchmakers closing their workshops at the same time resulting in a rush of water into the nearby lake? If you're keen to know more horology facts, make a beeline for the Horology Forum at Dubai Watch Week.
Under the theme Innovation and Technology, a stellar roster of speakers including curators, designers, collectors and artists will take the stage to talk. Among the speakers are Jean-Claude Biver, one of watchmaking's most endearing mavericks; award-winning actor and watch designer Aldis Hodge, who starred in Hollywood movies Straight Outta Compton and What Men Want; and visionary Dubai chef Izu Ani.
5. Get a free watch evaluation
Wondering what your timepiece is worth? Pass by the Watchbox Lounge at Dubai Watch Week and you can get a free evaluation from the experts. The pre-owned luxury watch platform will also be on hand to give advice on buying, selling and trading preloved timepieces, and will display a curated selection of the company's most loved pre-owned timepieces. Danny Govberg, chief executive of Watchbox, will also be among the speakers at the Horology Forum where he'll be discussing the changing climate of the luxury watch market.
Dubai Watch Week is from Wednesday, November 20, until Sunday, November 24, 10am-10pm; free; DIFC Gate Village, Dubai; visitors should register on www.dubaiwatchweek.com
