SPECTRUM SHIFTSorry, your browser does not support inline SVG.As colours, textures and techniques evolve, watchmakers are bringing dials to life through vivid surfaces and intricate craft.Sorry, your browser does not support inline SVG. There was a time when a bold timepiece meant a complicated movement, an unusual case shape or a lavish use of gems. Today, the dial is taking centre stage, with colour, texture and craft pushed to more expressive ends. Where black, silver and blue once dominated, a broader and more daring spectrum has emerged. Many of today’s standout dials blur the line between watchmaking and art: lacquer built up layer by layer, grand feu enamel fired repeatedly for depth, guilloche meticulously executed by hand, and gemstones and mother-of-pearl worked into luminous miniature landscapes. This range spans Rolex’s kaleidoscopic Jubilee motif and Piaget’s vivid orange enamel layered over gold to Louis Vuitton’s animated fantasy and Ressence’s cosmic composition. No longer just a surface to tell time, the dial is often where a watch makes its strongest first impression.01THE OYSTER PERPETUAL 36 DIAL REVISITS ROLEX’S LATE 1970S JUBILEE MOTIF, WITH ITS BRAND NAME RENDERED IN 10 HUES APPLIED INDIVIDUALLY.0304THE TIFFANY TIMER’S OPEN CASEBACK REVEALS THE SIGNATURE BIRD MOTIF FROM BIRD ON A ROCK, HAND-SCULPTED IN YELLOW GOLD ON THE OSCILLATING ROTOR.0607ON THE TYPE 9 IKE, THE CONVEX ORBITAL DIAL, DRIVEN BY RESSENCE’S ROCS MODULE, REPLACES TRADITIONAL HANDS WITH CONTINUOUSLY ROTATING DISCS.Discover more stories