Discover MB&F’s tapestry of magnificent automotive-inspired objets d’art at the MB&F, ‘PETROLHEADS FOREVER’ exhibition

Vroom, vroom, horologists! MB&F and The Hour Glass are pleased to invite you to the one-of-a-kind MB&F, ‘PETROLHEADS FOREVER’ exhibition, to be held at the MB&F Lab Singapore.

Spanning February 26, 2024 to March 11, 2024, the unique exhibition highlights MB&F’s history entwined with high-performance vehicles, as well as the horological-automotive symbiosis that engendered the charismatic machine and one of the stars of the exhibition, HM8 Mark 2. The exhibition opens from 11am to 8pm from Mondays to Saturdays, and 11am to 6pm on Sundays and public holidays.

Conversant ambassadors and co-drivers will be on hand to help nagivate visitors through the exhibition, expounding the complexity and creativity encased in each creation, from the wonderful ideas to the breathless craftsmanship that lead to the birth of the masterpiece.

MB&F produces machines like no others

Short for Maximilian Büsser and Friends, it is from the visionary and catalytic mind of the eponymous founder that a concept of each creation was born. Büsser seeks to push boundaries, turning the seemingly impossible and imaginative into a distinct reality. He finds inspiration in the avant-garde, often times in the seductive lines of automobiles and the exhilaration of motorsport.

“I lost my way, I lost my marbles, and ended up in the watchmaking industry,” he shares with a smile, acknowledging that cars were the objects he sketched as an adolescent. “So, when I decided to tackle car design in a timepiece, this was humungous for me. It was everything I had ever dreamed of.”

To realise his vision and daring, he entrusts artisans and experts in watchmaking, rare crafts and metallurgy to confect extraordinary designs that have made MB&F the envy of watchmaking. Today, the Maison, founded in 2005 as a rebellion to the stringency of corporate watchmaking, is an indisputable icon and a G-force to be reckoned with in contemporary and collaborative horology. Büsser, the team principal, harnesses the synergies bubbling under the bonnet, producing a symphony of masterpieces in company of his team members, whom he counts as friends.

Expect the unexpected at MB&F, ‘PETROLHEADS FOREVER’

Visitors to the exhibition can look forward to a curation of rarefied MB&F machines. To keep proceedings anticipatory and exciting, however, the confirmed exhibits include the HM8 Mark 2, a machine heavily influenced by his love of automobiles and the latest in the continuum, which began with the HM5 in 2012 and, later on in 2015, the HMX. Ostending opening and closing slats, the HM5 is an homage to Marcello Gandini’s design for the Bertone Lamborghini Miura with its futuristic louvers, while the HMX evokes Italian coach builder Touring Superleggera.

Preceding the Mark 2, the HM8 took its design cues from Can-Am cars of the famous Canadian American Racing Championship. The HM8 Mark 2, debuted in 2023, sports a “double bubble” sapphire crystal and is attired in an aerodynamic chassis for a decidedly bolder look.

In the laboratory of MB&F

The chosen venue, MB&F Lab Singapore, was a world’s first when it opened on 20 September, 2022, at the prestigious Raffles Hotel. The intimate boutique located at the ground floor of the Raffles Hotel Arcade is an experiential retail hybrid – akin to the famous M.A.D. Gallery – which has since been expanded to several locations around the world.

Audiences in Singapore were the first to clap eyes on the new concept, and with the exhibition, guests will be of a select group to witness an comprehensive collection of MB&F machines, past and present, under one roof.

Accentuating a giant blue reflective lens, the clean, crisp, gallery-like interiors in white, complete with custom-made mid-century-inspired tables and matching furniture, provide the perfect setting for the exhibition. Like MB&F’s provocative expressions, the immersive space is a sight to behold and one to experience in person.

MB&F and The Hour Glass – a friendship steeped in time

MB&F’s history is interwoven with The Hour Glass’, the purveyor of MB&F in Singapore, Malaysia, Australia and Thailand. The lasting friendship between the brand and the retailer began in 1999 when Group Managing Director of The Hour Glass, Michael Tay, met Büsser, who would go on to establish MB&F in 2005.

Throughout the decades, The Hour Glass has advocated MB&F’s relentless pursuit in spearheading contemporary watchmaking. Be it tastefully designed for table tops or the wrist, MB&F’s audacious endeavours are manifested, among others, in the constellation of automotive-inspired machines. Over the years, MB&F’s statement creations have deservedly garnered numerous international design and watchmaking awards. Many of which will be on unimpeded display at the exhibition.

MB&F LAB SINGAPORE

328 North Bridge Road, #01-19, Raffles Hotel Arcade, Singapore 188719

Tel: 6550 2688

Opening Hours

Monday to Saturday: 11.00am to 8.00pm

Sunday & Public Holiday: 11.00am to 6.00pm