For collectors seeking something mechanically and aesthetically elaborate and uninhibited, the watches explored in this edition of WatchBox After Hours make quite an impression. Join Armand Johnston, C’Q Gottlieb, and Alex Lazarus for a conversation about watches that embody individuality, artistry, and cutting-edge watchmaking techniques.

The models discussed here are a showcase for creativity. First up is the Hublot Big Bang Broderie Sugar Skull with a yellow sapphire-set case and electric yellow threads embroidered in a skull motif on the dial and intricately along the strap. Next is the Graff Star Grande Date Limited Edition, constructed with a distinguished blue ceramic faceted case and striking blue dial. The guys admire the unusual faceted crystal case back and draw attention to the micro-adjustment feature of the deployant buckle, reinforcing how watch collecting and admiration is truly the sum of many, many details.

A one-of-one, piece unique from Manufacture Contemporaine du Temps is up next, designed with a black PVD-coated white gold case. The MCT Sequential Two American Eagle Limited Edition employs a unique system of rotating prisms and a jumping C-shape arc to display the time - it is definitely worth watching our hands-on review for a closer look. Armand characterizes the next watch as a ‘really cool lesson in fluid dynamics in timekeeping’ – the HYT H1. Traditionally, fluid is the enemy of a mechanical timepiece, but the main design feature of this model is a fluid-powered retrograde hour display around the periphery of the dial.

The final piece on the table is whimsical, wacky, and mechanically complex – the Bell & Ross BR-01 Laughing Skull. It features bold proportions, a “Clous de Paris” pattern engraved in the case, and an automaton found on the skull head. As you wind the watch, the skull’s mouth moves up and down, as if it is laughing at you…