Over the next two months, watch enthusiasts and collectors will have the unique opportunity to bid on extraordinary timepieces across two high-profile charity auctions. While these sales support vastly different causes—ranging from medical research for rare neurological disorders to free public arts education—they share a defining characteristic that is bound to drive intense competitive bidding: every single watch on offer is an absolute one-of-a-kind creation.
For passionate collectors, these upcoming events represent far more than just an acquisition opportunity. They provide a rare intersection of high-end horology, elite craftsmanship, and meaningful philanthropy, allowing buyers to secure peerless additions to their collections while directly contributing to vital global causes.
Watches for ELA: Fighting Rare Diseases in Geneva
The autumn auction season kicks off on November 9 at Christie’s in Geneva, where the second biennial edition of Watches for ELA will take place at the prestigious Four Seasons Hotel des Bergues. All proceeds from the auction will directly benefit the European Leukodystrophy Association (ELA) International.
Founded in 1992, ELA International has dedicated decades to funding critical medical research into leukodystrophies. These are devastating, rare genetic diseases that affect the brain and the spinal cord, leading to severe physical disabilities and, tragically, early death in both children and adults. In addition to powering research, the funds raised help support the families and caregivers of those coping with the daily realities of these conditions.
The biennial event was originally launched in 2024 to widespread acclaim within the horological community. During its inaugural outing, the sale of 11 exceptional watches—donated by generous independent watchmakers and mainstream brands alike, including ArtyA, Bovet, Girard-Perregaux, Konstantin Chaykin, Louis Erard, Montblanc, Richard Mille, and Ulysse Nardin, alongside a 2005 platinum F.P. Journe Vagabondage consigned by a private collector—raised a remarkable 843,000 Swiss francs.
This year’s auction builds significantly on that momentum, featuring a curated catalog of 22 unique watches. Among the participating maisons returning or joining the fold are ArtyA, Bovet, Louis Moinet, Cédric Johner, Pikullik, and Montblanc. However, one of the most anticipated highlights of the evening is a deeply personal timepiece: a Cartier Pasha owned by French soccer legend and celebrated coach Zinédine Zidane. A longtime, devoted supporter of ELA International, Zidane has consigned the very first watch he ever purchased for himself early in his professional athletic career.
Reflecting on the journey of building support within the closely guarded luxury watch industry, Guy Alba, president of ELA International, noted that the organization initially lacked an established network in the horological world. To overcome this, Alba relied heavily on personal friends with strong ties to the luxury sector to help introduce the charity to brands willing to lend their support.
"We entered the world of watchmaking without any real network," Alba explained in an interview. "François-Henri Pinault, a long-standing friend and supporter, was the only one who believed in the potential of our initiative, but above all, in the importance of the cause and the need to raise funds to fight this terrible disease: leukodystrophy. We are also immensely fortunate to have Zinédine Zidane by our side for 25 years, dedicating a significant part of his public profile to supporting ELA."
TimeForArt: Celebrating Contemporary Art and Horology in New York
Just weeks later, on December 5, the philanthropic watch calendar shifts across the Atlantic to New York City for the third and largest edition of TimeForArt. Hosted during Phillips’s New York Watch Auction, this biennial charity sale will feature an impressive lineup of 26 timepieces, each uniquely conceived and crafted specifically for the event.
Proceeds from TimeForArt directly benefit the Swiss Institute, a prominent nonprofit contemporary art institution based in New York City. The organization is celebrated for its commitment to the local community, offering free public art exhibitions, dynamic cultural programs, and educational workshops that make contemporary art accessible to all.
According to Mojdeh Cutter, the Swiss Institute’s director of partnerships and TimeForArt, participating watchmakers have increasingly embraced the conceptual heart of the project. "Again this year the brands are really thinking of what art and design means to them, and doing something edgy or forward-looking," Cutter said, noting that the watchmakers take the curatorial prompts with the utmost seriousness.
"Now that we’ve had two really successful sales, the third edition feels like the initiative is maturing," she added. "Brands are now expecting it. A lot already have an idea for future editions."
The 2026 TimeForArt catalog boasts singular, custom-made timepieces from some of the most storied names in luxury, including Bulgari, Chanel, Chopard, and Hermès. For Hermès, which is participating in the auction for the very first time, the creative challenge resulted in a breathtaking work of miniature art.
"They made a white-gold watch with an enamel dial that depicts the brand’s Faubourg HQ building in Paris in a very celebratory way," Cutter explained. "There are little animals in the building that you can see through the windows that are dancing. It’s very playful and joyful and highlights just how incredible their artisan team is."
Another notable consignment comes from Universal Genève, which has prepared a watch featuring a meticulously handmade miniature portrait on its dial, serving as a physical manifestation of its ongoing partnership with the estate of renowned Art Deco painter Tamara de Lempicka.
Artistic Collaborations and Masterful Craftsmanship
Many participating watchmakers interpreted the core "time for art" theme by forging direct collaborations with celebrated contemporary artists, resulting in mesmerizing fusions of fine watchmaking and fine art.
Geneva-based independent brand Czapek partnered with Swiss painter Guillaume Denervaud, a former artist-in-residence at the Swiss Institute. "He’s an oil painter and basically painted over a dial made from pale blue mother-of-pearl," Cutter said, describing the finish. "The painting work he did on the dial is extremely reminiscent of his own paintings and kind of abstract."
Similarly, Maurice Lacroix joined forces with Ficus Interfaith, a New York City-based artistic duo founded in 2013 by painters Ryan Bush and Raphael Martinez Cohen. Known for their innovative work with architectural materials, the duo applied their unique vision to horology. "They work with terrazzo," Cutter noted. "For TimeForArt, they worked with freshwater pearls, sliced them in half and had them all cast in resin for the dial. You can’t tell at first glance if it’s a painting, but it’s all these beautiful pearls, each with their own organic shapes, opalescence and color."
Other brands focused heavily on showcasing traditional decorative arts. Chopard, for instance, submitted an exceptional Alpine Eagle model distinguished by a masterfully hand-engraved white-gold dial.
Pre-sale auction estimates for the TimeForArt collection span a remarkably broad spectrum, catering to collectors at various entry points. Estimates range from an accessible $500 to $1,000 for a Dennison watch featuring a vibrant stone dial crafted from malachite and lapis, all the way up to $80,000 to $160,000 for an intricate Jaquet Droz model. The latter emerged from an inspiring collaboration with a prominent Swiss design school. "They had a competition with design students, who all submitted proposals for the design, and the winning student got to design the watch with the brand," Cutter explained.
A prominent overarching trend among this year’s consignments is the extensive use of expressive stone dials. Cutter pointed to a Bulgari model featuring a striking green marble dial, an Atelier Wen timepiece showcasing intricate stone dial marquetry, and a Chanel watch featuring a malachite dial paired with a flying tourbillon, which carries an estimated value of $70,000 to $140,000. "It’s really nice to see how they used the stone’s natural patterns and colors to compose the dial design and create the harmony," she observed.
Adding to the anticipation, several highly anticipated lots have yet to be fully unveiled, including a collaborative masterpiece by independent watchmaker Simon Brette and celebrated master enamellist Anita Porchet, which is virtually guaranteed to draw intense interest from connoisseurs.
When combined, these two major autumn events will see a total of 48 completely unique, one-of-a-kind watches cross the auction block between Geneva and New York. For dedicated collectors, the upcoming months offer a rare, fleeting window to acquire museum-grade horological achievements while simultaneously driving profound, positive change in the world.
