The New Roger Dubuis Excalibur Liu Wei Monotourbillon

The manufacture Roger Dubuis has gone a long way before settling to build the “future of hyper-horology.” The brand’s vision of this future is a radical one. It is mechanically complex, flamboyant, excessive and expensive, so out of reach for the general population. Still, Roger Dubuis and its Excalibur watches remain a favourite for sheer creativity and rebel spirit paired with engaging, yet sometimes crazy, engineering solutions. Take Quatuor watches for an example. Or this new artistic collaboration, the Excalibur Liu Wei Monotourbillon.

Roger Dubuis provided a canvas to welcome the reproduction of Liu Wei’s original work and created inside the walls of the Geneva manufacture painting atelier. The work by this contemporary Chinese artist is said to reinterpret “the astral signature of the iconic Excalibur MT.” So it is the Excalibur MT that was “recrafted and reshaped” last year, which allowed for the artist’s expression. “Art is about seeing the world anew and experimenting with different ways of creating that world,” says Liu Wei, and Roger Dubuis watchmakers answered the challenge to create the perfect way to reflect the artist’s vision. 

Roger Dubuis created a clever three-layer structure for the Excalibur Liu Wei Monotourbillon to produce an astonishing visual effect. The first layer is a transparent sapphire glass engraved with vertical lines on both sides. The lines are then filled by hand, in an exact process, with every line dried completely; only then the next one could be painted by the craftsperson. The artist redesigned the second layer, the star-shaped bridge of the manually wound RD512 movement, and it was made thinner to accommodate the concept. The third and final layer is a sapphire glass caseback, laser-engraved with horizontal lines and hand-filled with UV paint. The mix of regular paints and UV varieties is said to “create a sophisticated architectural depth under UV light,” with shades of different colours in sync with Liu Wei’s perception of the world’s “vibrancy and energy.”

The skeleton tourbillon Calibre RD512 operates at 21,600 vibrations/hour. The tourbillon carriages are made of titanium and cobalt chrome, allowing an improved power reserve of 72 hours. The 42mm case has a water resistance of 100 m; the case, the bezel, the crown, and the ring of the caseback are all made of titanium, as the buckle on a calf leather strap with a quick release system.

The Roger Dubuis Excalibur Liu Wei Monotourbillon is released in a limited edition of 8 pieces, price is EUR 165,500. Please visit www.rogerdubuis.com for more information.