The Rolling Stones Automaton – Only Watch 2023:
It’s only love – and I like it
The timepiece for the 2023 edition of Only Watch is based around the colorful world of children and brought to life by the mechanics of the Rolling Stones Automaton. Beneath the offset hours and minutes display at twelve o’clock, a first disc showcases the Stones’ instruments crafted from gold blocks, painted and set on a black vinyl-colored disc.
A second disc comes to life at the touch of a button. The Stones’ iconic tongue rises and falls, moving from left to right as it does so. The power reserve is shown at nine o’clock by a cam replicating the tonearm and stylus of a traditional record turntable. As it rotates, the brightly-colored spiral creates an optical illusion just like a child’s spinning top.
Each color has been hand-painted to match the Only Watch 2023 palette with artisanal skill, using only natural pigments. In the center of the piece, the Rolling Stones tongue glows in the dark, reminiscent of a nightlight in a child’s bedroom.
