Some of the most passionate love stories of the 20th century were written in Bulgari jewels. One of the most striking affairs hallowed with Bulgari gems was the passionate romance between Liz Taylor and Richard Burton, which arose on the set during the filming of “Cleopatra” in Rome. As every upscale luxury brand knows, there's nothing like a good story to give your product wings, and if it's a love story, even better. A few months ago, Bulgari released two limited edition watches honoring Mexican artists Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera. The stormy love affair of the two most important artists of the 20th century was clearly reflected in their art. The watch, which has collaborated with artist representatives over the past three years to celebrate the life and career of Frida Kahlo, is a new Tubogas Manchette in yellow gold; For Diego Rivera, Bulgari chose an elegant Octo Finissimo.
Diego Rivera was already an established artist and muralist when he met Frida Kahlo at a Mexican Communist Party meeting in the late 1920s. Rivera and Kahlo were twenty years her senior and shared a passionate, tumultuous relationship that lasted until Kahlo's death in 1954. During her lifetime, Kahlo created more than 150 works of art, 55 of which were self-portraits, often depicting traumatic events in her life. Frida Kahlo is now a cult figure and all major museums in the world host exhibitions dedicated to Frida Kahlo.
Frida Kahlo Tubogas Manchette
The watch chosen to celebrate Kahlo's indomitable spirit and her ability to transform adversity into art is a new Tubogas Manchette. The Tubogas cuff watch is a world first and is crafted from solid yellow gold. Its design is inspired by a model from the 1970s. The new cuff artfully wraps around the wrist with its slim, tapered links and references an iconic Bulgari design: the Tubogas. Created in 1948, Tubogas, named after and inspired by the braided metal coils of an everyday gas pipe, was a flexible, spiral-shaped bracelet that Bulgari used for its Serpenti wristwatch.
The 135mm yellow gold single-wrap Tubogas bracelet features geometric links, each inscribed with a text from Kahlo's biographer Beatriz Alvarado's novel Diarios de un Accidente, which describes “more than a thousand ways of kissing.”
The delicate 19mm yellow gold case frames a mother-of-pearl dial with diamond hour markers and is powered by Bulgari's small Lady Solotempo mechanical movement. Launched in early 2025, the BVS100 Solotempo round automatic watch measuring 19mm x 3.9mm is designed to fit the small heads of the Serpenti family. Although the Lady Solotempo is small and weighs just 5 grams, it offers a robust power reserve of 50 hours.
Diego Rivera Octo Finissimo
Diego Rivera is a key figure in Mexican art and is known for his monumental murals depicting Mexican culture and history. Inspired by Marxist philosophy, his murals justified indigenous history, class struggle and social revolution after years of colonial rule.
The piece dedicated to Diego Rivera is the ultra-thin 40mm Octo Finissimo from Bulgari in yellow gold. It stands out from regular production models and is the first to feature Roman numerals, including the numerals VII and VIII, which are not normally shown on the dial due to the position of the small seconds counter. Another peculiarity is the deliberate error of repeating the Roman numeral XI twice on the dial (at 9 and 11 o'clock). Although there is no evidence that Rivera ever painted a watch with this flaw, it is a detail that collectors will enjoy.
Launched in 2017 as the world's thinnest automatic watch, the case showcases the family's complex stacked octagonal architecture. The sapphire crystal back, on which Diego Rivera's signature and a silhouette of his profile are laser-engraved, reveals the in-house automatic caliber BVL 138 with its platinum micro-rotor and ultra-slim height of just 2.23 mm. The modern movement operates at 21,600 vibrations per hour and offers a robust power reserve of 60 hours.
Both models are limited editions of 25 pieces. The Tubogas Manchette Frida Kahlo retails CHF 64,000 / EUR 75,000 while the Octo Finissimo Diego Rivera is priced at CHF 49,200 / EUR 56,000.
More information at bulgari.com.
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