Yoon Ahn, co-founder and creative director of Ambush, knows a thing or two about jewellery. The high-fashion jewellery brand mixes contemporary design with established techniques, always looking towards the future of adornment and, perhaps, anticipating its consumers’ needs. Recently, Ahn collaborated with Swiss luxury watchmaker Audemars Piguet to create a one-of-a-kind conceptual timepiece that honouring centuries of time keeping while exploring humans’ relationship with time itself. The result is sleek and dainty featuring a constellation-inspired black aventurine dial and a striking red tourbillon. It’s safe to say this is a woman who knows exactly what she wants.

What watch are you wearing?

I’m wearing the watch I designed, the Audemars Piguet Yoon and Verbal Royal Oak Concept Flying Tourbillon.

Tell us about it.

We were inspired by our visit to AP’s headquarters. I thought about the generations of people making parts there and how they could see the night sky outside the window. It hit me that time is a commodity, something you can look at on your phone, but to truly understand it, it’s the earth following the movement of the Moon and stars. And so we made a black aventurine dial that’s like a little constellation all crammed into it.

How did you come to own it?

Verbal [Yoon’s husband and Ambush collaborator] and I designed it alongside Audemars Piguet. For the brand to trust our instinct enough to work on something together, it’s so cool. There are only 150 of them in existence. One thing that hit me through this process is that what I worked on is going to outlive me on earth. It’s just kinda like, whoa.

What’s the story behind it?

When you grow up and get a good paycheck, you want a nice watch. And for some reason the AP Royal Oak, without knowing much about watch brands, stuck with me personally because I studied graphic design. I loved very graphic, geometric lines and just seeing that timepiece, I was like, I need to have this. And this was 20 years ago.

What do you love about it and why is it your favourite?

I always want a complicated watch, so we emphasised the heart of the timepiece with its red tourbillon. If you’re into astrology, the colour represents Mars energy – something that makes you take charge and go for it. The case also reflects that vibe. As collectors, we usually take the piece out and put the packaging away. But why can’t we make something we actually want to display? So we designed it to be shown off on your shelves.

When do you wear it and what do you wear it with?

I always loved a concept watch that AP did, but it was 44mm and too big on my wrist. Instead, we designed this as a 38.5mm and it was unique. It looks so good on me. I can just throw it on in the morning with sneakers and a tank top but it also works for night-time with a nice outfit. It’s just so slick-looking.

What would be a dream watch or piece of jewellery for you to own?

More than owning, I’d want to work on a time machine. The concept of time is very interesting to me. It’s something we take for granted and this project made me think about its philosophy. To go to the future or the past, that’s wild, you know? I don’t want to change anything, just witness or observe, not play God. Or I’d want a bangle that lets me bend space and time, so I could teleport and travel.

Taken from the new 10 Australia Watches & Jewellery supplement.

@yoon_ambush