MB&F Revisit HM11 Through Art Deco Lens

When MB&F launched Horological Machine N°11 in 2023, it didn’t just debut a new watch — it introduced a piece of wearable architecture.

Conceived by Maximilian Büsser and Eric Giroud, the original HM11 Architect channelled the organic, neo-futurist forms of the 1960s–70s, transforming the wrist into a four-room micro-house arranged around a central atrium and flying tourbillon. Even winding became architectural: each 45° rotation of the case delivered 72 minutes of power, turning the act into a tactile ritual.

Now, for 2025, designer Maximilian Maertens reinterprets the structure through a new lens — the bold geometry and vertical energy of 1930s Art Deco — giving us the HM11 Art Deco.

From Soft Curves to Rising Lines

Where the Architect felt like poured concrete and rounded volumes, the Art Deco edition stands sharper and more graphic. Sunbeam motifs replace the original conical markers; two-tone rings and period-styled typography sharpen the displays; and the hands glow with a red, stained-glass effect. Bridges rise like architectural stonework and the stepped roof recalls icons such as the Chrysler Building. Even the crown now echoes layered poster graphics.

Viewed side by side, the difference is striking: Architecture – organic, tactile, exploratory. Art Deco – upright, structured, metropolitan. Both remain unmistakably MB&F: machines designed not just to be worn, but inhabited.

The 42mm grade 5 titanium case was built like micro-architecture, with curved walls, stacked sapphire domes, and a crown nearly ten millimetres wide, engineered with a complex multi-gasket “airlock” system to remain functional despite its size. Inside, an in-house manual movement drove a central flying tourbillon built around bevel gears, the engine suspended by four laser-cut steel springs derived from aerospace technology. The inaugural editions established a new aesthetic species: half timepiece, half inhabitable structure.

The new HM11 Art Deco builds on the same foundations while adopting a distinct visual language. Guided by Maximilian Maertens’ fascination with early-20th-century architecture – from Parisian cinemas to Manhattan skyscrapers – the design trades the organic fluidity of the Architect for the geometry and rhythm of the Art Deco movement.

The HM11 Art Deco is crafted in two editions of 10 pieces each, totalling 20 pieces for MB&F’s 20th Anniversary, both in grade 5 titanium: – Blue dial plate with 3N yellow-gold-toned bridges, paired with a white lizard strap; – Green dial plate with 5N rose-gold-toned bridges, on a beige lizard strap.

HM11 Architect

In 2023, MB&F turned the wrist into a micro-architecture with the HM11 Architect. Inspired by Le Corbusier’s idea that “a house is a machine to live in,” it wasn’t just a watch — it was a four-room house, centred on a flying tourbillon beneath twin sapphire domes. Each room had a function — time, power reserve, thermometer, or time-setting — and could rotate into view, making winding a tactile, playful ritual. The 42mm titanium case, with its monumental sapphire crown and laser-cut suspension springs, combined radical design with aerospace-grade engineering. On the wrist, it looked like architecture; in the hand, it felt like a 1970s spaceship.

HM11 Art Deco

For 2025, Maximilian Maertens reinterprets the HM11 through Art Deco. The new edition replaces organic curves with verticality and graphic rhythm: sunbeam motifs on the dial, two-tone rings, period typography, and bridges that rise like ornamental stonework. The stepped roof and crown echo skyscrapers such as the Chrysler Building, while the tourbillon bridge aligns with the base plate for a clean architectural axis. Side by side, the Architect feels fluid and sculptural; the Art Deco stands upright and metropolitan. Both remain machines to be inhabited, not merely worn, but now in two limited titanium editions of ten pieces each, celebrating MB&F’s 20th anniversary.

Technical Specifications:

HM11 Architect (2023 editions) – limited to 25 pieces each:

– in titanium with blue dial plate;

– in titanium with roses gold dial plate.

HM11 Art Deco (2025 editions) – limited to 10 pieces each:

– in titanium with blue dial plate and 3N yellow gold toned bridges;

– in titanium with green dial plate and 5N rose gold toned bridges.

Engine

Three-dimensional horological engine featuring flying tourbillon and bevel gears, developed in-house by MB&F.

Mechanical movement, manual winding (by turning the entire case clockwise)

Power reserve: 4 days (96 hours)

Balance frequency: 18’000bph/2.5Hz

Plates: Blue and 5N PVD treatment for HM11 Architect / Blue and green PVD treatment for HM11 Art Deco

Bridges: rhodium-plated for HM11 Architect, 5N or 3N PVD for the HM11 Art Deco

Number of movement components: 364 components for HM11 Architect and 330 components for HM11 Art Deco

Number of jewels: 29 jewels

Functions/indications

Hours and minutes

Power reserve

Temperature (-20 to 60° Celsius, or 0 to 140° Fahrenheit)

Case

Grade 5 titanium

Display markers (HM11 Architect): conical rods in stainless steel (Ø 0.50mm to 0.60mm), darker beads in polished titanium and lighter beads in polished aluminium (Ø 1.30mm to 2.40mm).
Display markers (HM11 Art Deco): laser-cut circular grained markers in 5N PVD for the green model, 3N PVD for the blue model

Hands (HM11 Art Deco): White gold skeleton hands with transparent red enamel insert

Dimensions: 42mm diameter x 23mm height

Number of case components: 92 components

Water resistance: 20m / 68’ / 2ATM

Sapphire crystals

Sapphire crystals on top, back, and on each chamber-display treated with anti-reflective coating on both faces

Sapphire crystal time-setting crown

Strap & Buckle

HM11 Architect: rubber strap – white for the blue model and khaki for the rose gold model.

HM11 Art Deco: lizard strap – white for the blue model and beige for the green model.

Titanium folding buckle.

Price