Few modern watch brands enjoy experimentation quite as much as Ulysse Nardin.
The brand today is best known for its Freak line which utilizes the watch’s movement as its dial and hands, and there are various levels of Freaks — the Freak X, Freak One, Freak S — that gradually increase the watch’s, uh, freakiness.
Arguably second to the Freak in importance in the brand’s current lineup is the Blast, a series of bold and angular watches known for their avant-garde designs. Many Blast models feature an X-shaped skeletonized movement, something that immediately makes them recognizable thanks to their unique architecture.
The latest Blast watch from Ulysse Nardin also features one of these Skeleton X movements, but it’s displayed in a way that’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen in a watch before.
Skeleton or Ghost?
UN’s new watch is a collab with Kyrgyz artist Vsevolod Sever Cherepanov, who goes by the moniker Amoureuxpeintre. The one-time Nike collaborator is known for his forward-thinking minimalist approach to design, and he used his signature style to put an interesting spin on the concept of a skeleton watch.
The Ulysse Nardin Blast Amoureuxpeintre is, at its core, a Skeleton X watch, but one that’s undergone an extreme reimagining. Typically on a Skeleton X, both the dial and caseback are made of transparent sapphire, offering a full view of the watch’s inner workings from both sides. This is the case for nearly all skeleton watches from every manufacturer.
