Swatch and Guggenheim present a collection of four watches inspired by 20th century masterpieces

The Swatch Art Journey is enriched by a new chapter with the presentation of the Swatch × Guggenheim collection, a project that brings 20th-century art and contemporary watchmaking into dialogue through four models inspired by as many masterpieces by Edgar Degas, Claude Monet, Paul Klee and Jackson Pollock. The collection is the result of a collaboration with the Guggenheim in New York and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice, and is part of a relationship begun in the early 1990s between the Swiss brand and museum institutions linked to the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation. The project involves works housed in two iconic venues of modern and contemporary art. Three of the landmark works belong to the collections of the Guggenheim in New York, while the fourth comes from the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice. The link between the two sides of the Atlantic becomes one of the central elements of the initiative, which aims to translate images and languages of 20th-century art into an accessible key, while maintaining a direct reference to the original works.

“The Peggy Guggenheim Collection is honored to join Swatch in this celebration of art, time and imagination,” emphasizes Karole P. B. Vail, director of the Peggy Guggenheim Collection. “Through the Art Journey initiative, masterpieces from the Guggenheim Museums in New York and Venice are brought to life in a new and unexpected form. This collaboration reflects our shared commitment to making art accessible to a wider and more diverse audience. Swatch’s ongoing commitment to the art and legacy of the Peggy Guggenheim Collection allows us to continue to share these works with audiences around the world in ever more creative ways.”

“The Guggenheim,” says Mariët Westermann, Director and CEO of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation and Museum, “is thrilled to partner with Swatch to celebrate and visionary collections of the Guggenheim in New York and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice through the Art Journey initiative. We are grateful to Swatch for supporting the preservation of the Guggenheim Foundation’s permanent collection. Swatch understands time like few others, and its generosity will ensure that the public can enjoy these priceless works of art for decades and centuries to come.”

“We couldn’t be prouder of the collaboration with Guggenheim-it is a true feather in the cap of the Swatch Art Journey,” says Carlo Giordanetti, member of the Swatch AG management team and CEO of the Swatch Art Peace Hotel. “With the Swatch × Guggenheim collection, we celebrate not only Swatch’s love of art, but also its enduring relationship with the Guggenheim in New York and the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice. Years of unforgettable Swatch events and collaborations with these two major art institutions have led to a culminating moment: four masterpieces chosen by the curatorial teams and reimagined by Swatch as ’wearable art on the wrist.’ Together, Guggenheim and Swatch take an important step forward in bringing art closer to people, worldwide.”

The model dedicated to Edgar Degas takes inspiration from Dancers in Green and Yellow (Danseuses vertes et jaunes), made in 1903 and now on display at the Guggenheim in New York. The watch, called Degas’s Dancers, focuses attention on a detail of the work, foregrounding a dancer’s feet on the dial. The straps echo the sinuous shapes of the figures and the tulle tutus, while the color choice, playing on shimmering greens and muted yellows, recalls the sense of movement that characterizes the artist’s work. The reference to Degas’ practice, known for its attention to gestures and compositional cuts, thus becomes an integral part of the design.

Dedicated to Claude Monet is Monet’s Doge’ s Palace, inspired by The Doge’s Palace, as seen from St. George Major (Le Palais Ducal vu de Saint-Georges Majeur) of 1908, also preserved at the Guggenheim in New York. The painting depicts the Doge’s Palace in Venice and establishes a direct link between the two institutions involved in the project. The image of the palace appears on the dial, rendered through references to the luminous brushstrokes ofImpressionism, while the straps evoke the reflections of the lagoon. The model also features a technical feature that changes the appearance of the dial after exposure to ultraviolet light, bringing out a vivid orange coloration that refers to a symbolic reading of Venice, often personified in artistic tradition. This watch is also available with SwatchPAY!, the integrated payment system developed by the brand.

The third model, Klee’s Bavarian Don Juan, is inspired by The Bavarian Don Juan (Der bayrische Don Giovanni), a 1919 work by Paul Klee. The painting, conceived as a veiled self-portrait, depicts a figure climbing a staircase surrounded by the names of five women. The watch echoes the geometry and color palette of the work, placing the main character on the dial and distributing the women’s names on the straps. A distinctive element is the date disc, which changes color daily, in reference to a well-known confession by the artist about his changing infatuations.

The collection is rounded out with Pollock’s Alchemy, inspired by Alchemy of 1947, a key work by Jackson Pollock housed in the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in Venice. The painting represents one of the founding moments ofAmerican Abstract Expressionism and is notable for its dripping technique, based on pouring and splattering color onto an unstretched canvas. This mode of operation finds a counterpart in the design of the watch, where the dial and strap become surfaces on which a dynamic weave of marks and colors is distributed. The reference to the figure of Peggy Guggenheim, who acquired and supported Pollock’s work, strengthens the link between the project and the history of twentieth-century collecting.

The four models share a common design element: a second hand twice the standard length, conceived as a visual reminder of the transatlantic dialogue between New York and Venice. The collection is thus intended to emphasize a continuity between the institutions involved and the desire to take art out of museum contexts and integrate it into everyday life. The collaboration between Swatch and the Guggenheim World is part of a well-established relationship that includes, over the years, support for the Peggy Guggenheim Collection and initiatives carried out at the Guggenheim in New York, including an event that saw the presentation of the unique Swatch IRONY Special designed by Arnaldo Pomodoro. From this perspective, the new collection is presented as a further development of a dialogue between industrial design and cultural institutions.

From an institutional point of view, the project also recalls the role of the Solomon R. Guggenheim Foundation, established in 1937 with the aim of promoting knowledge of modern and contemporary art through exhibitions, educational activities, research and publications. The foundation’s international network includes, in addition to locations in New York and Venice, the Guggenheim in Bilbao and the future museum in Abu Dhabi. The Guggenheim in New York, designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, is recognized as one of the most important architectural works of the 20th century and has been included as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Peggy Guggenheim Collection, housed in Palazzo Venier dei Leoni on the Grand Canal, represents one of Italy’s leading museums dedicated to 20th-century European and American art. Established from Peggy Guggenheim’s personal collection, it includes works ranging from Cubism to Abstractionism, Surrealism to Abstract Expressionism, with works by artists such as Picasso, Duchamp, Ernst, Miró, Pollock and Vedova. The Swatch × Guggenheim collection will be available from January 15, 2026 in Swatch stores worldwide and online.

Swatch and Guggenheim present a collection of four watches inspired by 20th century masterpieces

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