IntroducingBulgari's New Lee Ufan Limited Edition and Tourbillon Marble Octo Finissimos

One of the great things about Bulgari's Octo Finissimo is its ability to become the perfect canvas for experimenting in design and overall treatment. Carbon, steel, titanium, gold; brushed, polished, raw; you can even sketch a design on the dial and come up with one of my favorite watches. For Geneva Watch Days, the folks at Bulgari have taken two distinct approaches to the Octo Finissimo: one is rough and textured but otherwise simple, the other is soft and elegant but impressively complicated.

First up is a 150-piece limited edition made with Korean-born, Japan-based artist Lee Ufan, who (thanks to his friendship with the brand's inimitable Product Creation Executive Director Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani) was brought onboard to take the 40mm by 5.5mm titanium Octo Finissimo and turn it into something more sculptural.

Each case is hand-filed into a raw, hewn aesthetic complemented by a mirrored dial and black hands and indices. This design draws inspiration from Lee Ufan's sculptural art, where a rock sits on a mirrored surface.

The watch is powered by the BVL 138 manufacture automatic winding ultra-thin movement with micro-rotor, and while it's 2.23 mm thin, it still has 60 hours of power reserve. The watch is more art than a tool, by far, and only has 30m of water resistance, but it's still a beautiful interpretation and collaboration between two artists.

Next up is something more elegant, more Italian, and far more complicated, with the new 40mm by 5.75mm Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Marble, featuring a satin-polished platinum case, blue alligator strap, and a Blu Incanto marble. While not the brand's record-breaking manually-wound tourbillon movement, the 1.95mm thin BVL 268 movement is still impressive, with 52 hours of power reserve. The watch is limited to 30 pieces.

Both watches are available now, and are priced at €22,000 for the Lee Ufan limited edition and €104,500 for the Tourbillon Marble.

Collaborations sometimes seem like a dime a dozen in the watch world. There are some good ones, a lot of mediocre ones, and (unfortunately) not a lot of great ones. This one is special. If you ever meet Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani, you'll quickly know how thoughtful he is about design and how critical his eye is when it comes to the finer details. His appreciation of art (and of Japan) runs deep, and that's part of why we've seen such interesting collaborations with people like Tadao Ando in the past. The Lee Ufan, however, feels like another level.

I'll be seeing both this week at Geneva Watch Days, and I'll likely focus on the Lee Ufan limited edition as it's the most commercially approachable price. Still, the Tourbillon Marble seems like a very nice distillation of Bulgari's heritage into a very elevated form. It's not the first time they've done a similar treatment, with a green marble dial and yellow gold option previously released. They even did a version for Only Watch with a case and bracelet in marble. This is maybe the most wearable option to date, but as some say, you might want to go big or go home.

Brand: Bulgari
Model: Octo Finissimo Lee Ufan x Bulgari; Tourbillon Marble
Reference Number: 104132 (Lee Ufan); 104257 (Tourbillon Marble)

Diameter: 40mm
Thickness: 5.5mm (LU); 5.75mm (TM)
Case Material: Hand-filed titanium case body; Satin-polished platinum case
Dial Color: Mirroring effect dial; Blue Blu Incanto marble dial (TM)
Indexes: No indices, blackened hands; grey hands and indexes (TM)
Lume: None
Water Resistance: 30m
Strap/Bracelet: Blue alligator leather strap with polished platinum pin buckle (TM)

Caliber: BVL 138 (LU); BVL 268 (TM)
Functions: Hours, minutes, small seconds (LU); Hours, minutes, flying tourbillon (TM)
Power Reserve: 60 hours (LU); 52 hours (TM)
Winding: Micro-rotor automatic (LU); Manual winding (TM)
Frequency: 3Hz
Jewels: 36 jewels (LU); 11 jewels (TM)
Chronometer Certified: NoA
Additional Details: Lee Ufan's signature and limited edition total number (LU); limited edition total number (TM)

Price: €22,000 (LU); €104,500 (TM)
Availability: Now
Limited Edition: Yes, 150 pieces (LU); Yes, 30 pieces (TM)

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