Only 500 pieces of the watch will be available worldwide.

What: Tag Heuer and godfather of Japanese streetwear Hiroshi Fujiwara announce a new collaboration. This tie-up will be a second outing by the two powerhouses who had worked on a successful limited edition Carrera chronograph in 2018. For this sophomore effort, Fujiwara works his magic once again on a chronograph from Tag Heuer’s motoring-inflicted repertoire – zooming in particular to the brand’s vintage C-case models from the ’60s and ’70s. What transpires is a bada** 44mm automatic timepiece christened the Tag Heuer x Fragment Design Calibre Heuer 02 Automatic Chronograph which will be produced in a 500-piece run worldwide.

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Who: Fujiwara is the founder of Japanese multidisciplinary design outfit Fragment which started in 2003 and is often credited as being the mentor to street fashion heavy hitters like Jun Takahashi of Undercover and Nigo of Bape. His cult status – a “one-man marching band” as the folk at Hypebeast calls it – is cemented by his Midas touch when it comes to collaborations. One just needs to look at his highly-sought-after releases with the likes of Louis Vuiitton, Nike, Moncler and Levi’s for a taste of his cachet.

This chronograph boasts a highly legible dial, highlighting Fujiwara’s minimalist approach to design.

Why bother: What defines the Fujiwara shorthand when it comes to his collaborations is his ability to strip an existing design to remove superfluous elements and then finishing it off with subtle accents. Here, that clean aesthetic and sense of proportion is on full display – something that gets magnified a million times more when we’re talking about a small product like a watch. While some chronographs suffer from legibility issues, you won’t get that problem here. Form meets function, much?

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After stripping the watch of its extraneous details, what Fujiwara kept was a black opaline dial with tone-on-tone chronograph sub counters at 3 o’clock and 9 o’clock. Note also the addition of the “Fragment” name between the 4 o’clock and 5 o’clock on the dial and the trademark Fragment thunderbolt logo that is printed and sits nicely above the Tag Heuer emblem. Red accents printed on the index markers and lacquered on the hands add to the visual contrast of the watch design. Meanwhile, the interplay of polished and brushed steel components and the glossy ceramic bezel gives the watch dimension.

The other beautiful part of the design, in our opinion, is on the flip side of the timepiece. Here, the case back boasts an eye-popping red sapphire crystal window to show off the powerful Heuer 02 movement which packs a long 80-hour power reserve. Finishing off the geometric symmetry of the timepiece is a new five-row steel bracelet.

The red sapphire crystal case back shows off the Heuer 02 movement of the timepiece which boasts an 80-hour power reserve.

When: The watch will drop in stores on July 27 but Tag Heuer is already taking pre-orders. If you’re interested, join the waiting list by contacting the brand at www.tagheuer.com/sg or call 9664-2457 between Monday to Friday from 10 am to 5 pm for enquiries.

Where: Tag Heuer boutiques at #02-45 & #03-34 Wisma Atria and #01-13A Ion Orchard – both of which will be open from June 19.

How much: $8,650 a pop.