The OAK Collection exhibition – ‘One of A Kind’ – comprises 168 ‘best of the best’ vintage and contemporary museum quality watches was previewed at London’s Design Museum with an exclusive cocktail event to mark the grand opening of the week long OAK Collection public exhibition.
I had the privilege of meeting Patrick Getreide at the launch of the OAK Collection exhibition. When we met, Patrick was wearing two Patek Philippe watches, one of them was the latest addition to his collection – a platinum world timer – which he told me was waterproof, so he could wear it when swimming. He handed me the watch, which was fabulous, then proceeded to bring out a third watch he had in his jacket pocket – a Patek Philippe minute repeater.
Being in the presence of ‘one of the greatest collectors’ was an extraordinary experience. Over the next few hours, it was clear that Patrick Getreide’s collection is driven by passion in the pursuit of ‘Quality’, ‘Rarity’ and ‘Provenance’, which is reflected in the wonderfully curated OAK collection.
During the presentation, it was stated – by Aurel Bacs – that Mr Getreide was one of the ‘Top 5 collectors in the world’. For me he is the ‘No.1’ as he will never stop collecting and probably never sell his collection – he has only ever sold one watch from his collection!
If you want to see some of the best watches in the world all in one place, then you must visit The OAK Collection travelling exhibition at the Design Museum, 224-238 Kensington High St, London W8 6AG until the 25th May.