How do you make a watch look inflated? For the Hublot Jeff Koons collaboration, the answer was to re-engineer the Classic Fusion around the Balloon Dog. In October, Maddox Gallery brought Koons’ balloon sculptures to Hublot’s London boutique, beside the Hublot Balloon Dog watch that shares their inflated form. Discover the story behind the Jeff Koons Hublot watches, from the Classic Fusion Balloon Dog to the MP-14 Origin, and the balloon editions collectors can own today.
On the evening of 22 October, three of Jeff Koons’ iconic balloon sculptures were displayed alongside two new watch designs inspired by his art at Hublot’s New Bond Street boutique in London. Organised in partnership with Maddox Gallery, the invitation-only event followed the September launch of the Jeff Koons Hublot collaboration, which has captured the attention of watch collectors and art lovers alike.
The presentation brought Koons’ sculptures and Hublot’s horological engineering into direct conversation, offering a chance to examine the artistic ideas behind the watches and the ingenuity required to realise them.
What is the Hublot Jeff Koons Collaboration?
Appointed as Hublot’s newest ambassador in September 2026, Jeff Koons has inspired two limited-edition watches: the Classic Fusion Balloon Dog and the MP-14 Origin. Unveiled together in New York on 16 September, they take inspiration from two celebrated bodies of work by the Contemporary American artist.
Hublot London New Bond Street Boutique
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COLLECTOR INSIGHT: WHY 1980 MATTERS TO HUBLOT AND JEFF KOONS Hublot was founded in 1980, the same year Koons held his first solo exhibition at New York’s New Museum, then located at 65 Fifth Avenue at 14th Street. More than four decades later, those two beginnings are connected in the MP-14 Origin, whose name references the museum’s former address. |
Balloon Sculptures Beside the Balloon Dog Watch: Maddox Gallery at Hublot London
Jeff Koons, Balloon Dog Blue (2021) in Hublot Boutique, New Bond Street, W1 London
Three works from the Maddox Collection were presented at Hublot’s boutique at 14 New Bond Street: Balloon Monkey (2017), Balloon Swan (2017) and Balloon Dog Blue (2021). Unlike Koons’ stainless-steel originals, they were smaller porcelain editions, with chromatic or metallic finishes that recreate the highly reflective surfaces of his towering balloon sculptures.
The evening marked Maddox Gallery’s second event with the Swiss watchmaker in 2026, this time celebrating the newly launched Hublot Jeff Koons timepieces. In July, Behind the Glass brought Hublot’s summer collection to Maddox Gallery’s 9 Maddox Street space, where a watchmaker disassembled the Unico Flyback Chronograph in a live demonstration. The roles were reversed, with Maddox bringing Koons’ sculptures to Hublot.
Inside the Hublot London boutique
Reflecting on the partnership, Mario Zonias, Co-Founder and CEO of Maddox Gallery, said: “Jeff Koons has an extraordinary ability to make us look at familiar objects with fresh eyes. His balloon sculptures capture that perfectly, combining a sense of fun and spontaneity with remarkable technical sophistication. Hublot has approached Koons’ work with the same spirit of innovation, and we’re delighted to bring these pieces together in London, giving our collectors an opportunity to experience the relationship between art and watchmaking first-hand.”
The presentation took place at Hublot’s New Bond Street boutique on Thursday 22 October 2026, from 6.30pm to 8.30pm.
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Inside the Hublot Jeff Koons Watches
The two Hublot Jeff Koons watches explore different chapters of the artist’s career, from the playfulness of his ‘Celebration’ series to the reflective blue spheres of ‘Gazing Ball’.
Classic Fusion Balloon Dog by Jeff Koons: The Hublot Balloon Dog Watch
Hublot reworks the classic fusion through the Jeff Koon's Balloon Dog
Hublot’s watchmakers have radically re-engineered one of the brand’s signature timepieces, the Classic Fusion, to create a Jeff Koons watch that bears a striking resemblance to the artist’s Balloon Dog. The 42mm timepiece has a completely redesigned case, bezel and sapphire crystal, all of which have been given softly convex forms to recreate the pumped-up appearance of the artist’s animal sculptures.
Even Hublot’s signature H-shaped screws have been given rounded heads, while the crown resembles a balloon valve. The hour markers and hands also appear inflated, with a sculptural balloon tail at 10:30 and a miniature Balloon Dog forming the counterweight of the seconds hand. A padded metallic leather strap completes the Koonsification of Hublot’s Classic Fusion.
Available in mirror-polished stainless steel, red anodised aluminium and blue anodised aluminium, each limited to 200 pieces and priced at £19,700, the Hublot Balloon Dog watch brings a little of Koons’ irreverent humour to the serious business of luxury watchmaking.
MP-14 Origin: Koons’ Gazing Ball Meets Hublot’s First Automatic Central Tourbillon
Mp-14 origin by Jeff Koons © Hublot
The more technically ambitious of the two Jeff Koons Hublot watches, the MP-14 Origin looks more like a miniature solar system than a traditional timepiece. Its transparent octagonal case reveals rings of diamonds and blue sapphires circling a mysterious blue dome. In place of conventional hands, tiny cubes indicate the hours and minutes as they rotate around the dial.
The inspiration comes in part from Koons’ ‘Gazing Ball’ series, first introduced in 2013. Its brilliant blue glass spheres reflect viewers and their surroundings, an effect Hublot recreates with a sapphire-crystal dome coated in translucent blue varnish.
Beneath the dome lies Hublot’s first automatic central tourbillon, the mechanical heart of this exceptionally complex watch. Creating its transparent sapphire case alone requires more than 500 hours of machining. Inside, a movement comprising 594 individual components delivers a 60-hour power reserve, with the winding and time-setting controls concealed within the case, leaving nothing to interrupt its sculptural form.
Priced at £383,000 and limited to 30 pieces, the MP-14 Origin is as much an object to contemplate as a watch to wear, inviting the kind of close attention usually reserved for a work of art.
A closer look at the deconstructed Hublot watch
From Celebration to Classic Fusion: Why Koons’ Balloon Dog Became a Watch
Jeff Koons’ Balloon Dog sculptures are an unlikely source of inspiration for a luxury watch. Modelled on the twisted balloon animals seen at children’s parties, they are among the most recognisable works from his ‘Celebration’ series, which he began developing in 1994. Koons originally created five stainless-steel Balloon Dogs, each in a different colour and standing over three metres tall. Their resemblance to real balloons is so convincing that it’s hard to believe each sculpture weighs around a tonne. Read more about their creation in Jeff Koons’ Balloon Dog: The Making of a Contemporary Art Icon.
The stainless-steel edition of the Hublot Balloon Dog recreates their highly reflective finish on a miniature scale, using the same material as Koons’ enormous sculptures, while the red and blue aluminium versions reproduce two colours from his vibrant balloon-animal palette.
Jeff Koons x Louis Vuitton collaboration handbag © Louis Vuitton
The artist has previously collaborated with Louis Vuitton, placing reproductions of Old Master paintings on handbags in 2017, and BMW, designing a comic book-inspired Neo-Pop Art Car in 2010. The Hublot x Jeff Koons collaboration is his latest venture into the world of luxury design. Both earlier projects feature in our article 8 Artist Collaborations with Brands.
Beyond the Wrist: Collecting Jeff Koons’ Balloon Sculptures
Owning one of Koons’ balloon animal sculptures doesn’t necessarily require a vast exhibition space or a multimillion-pound budget. His porcelain editions offer collectors an opportunity to enjoy these celebrated works in their homes.
Produced in limited editions, these smaller balloon sculptures reproduce the colours, inflated proportions and gleaming surfaces of the stainless-steel originals, this time in porcelain, a material traditionally associated with delicacy and fine craftsmanship.
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COLLECTOR TIP: FROM THE WRIST TO THE SHELF Provenance, condition and authentication are all important considerations when acquiring a porcelain balloon animal sculpture by Koons, alongside the size of the edition. Collectors should also check the polished surfaces for chips, scratches or signs of repair, which may affect both appearance and value, and confirm whether the original packaging and certificate are included. |
Jeff Koons, Balloon Rabbit, Monkey and Swan (2017)
Hublot x Jeff Koons in London with Maddox Gallery
Maddox Gallery and Hublot’s exclusive presentation took place on the evening of 22 October 2026 at 14 New Bond Street, where Koons’ balloon sculptures were displayed alongside the Swiss watchmaker’s latest limited-edition timepieces.
Explore Jeff Koons sculptures available at Maddox Gallery or contact a Maddox art advisor to enquire about acquiring a work by the artist.
