British-Nigerian multidisciplinary artist and designer Yinka Ilori has ventured into the world of luxury timepieces with his first watch collaboration alongside M.A.D.Editions. The partnership has produced a striking three-part series called "Grow Your Dreams," featuring the M.A.D.1S watch platform transformed through Ilori's signature use of vibrant colors and botanical design elements. Each limited edition in the collection—named Sun, Nature, and Water—combines traditional Swiss watchmaking craftsmanship with Ilori's distinctive philosophy centered on optimism and personal growth.
The unexpected collaboration began when Maximilian Büsser, founder of MB&F and M.A.D.Editions, discovered Ilori's artwork in a magazine. Within just one week of that initial encounter, the artist found himself in Geneva, Switzerland, exploring the intricate world of watchmaking mechanics and the creative possibilities offered by M.A.D.Editions. For Ilori, this project represented an entirely new creative challenge, requiring him to translate his colorful storytelling approach onto the compact canvas of a wristwatch. "Yinka Ilori lives in a universe bursting with colour; his work makes you feel alive, like a rush of adrenaline pushing you to go further," Büsser explained. "This collaboration has created something that brings joy, a reminder to realise your own dreams."
Each edition in the Grow Your Dreams series showcases a carefully curated color palette that reflects different natural elements. The Sun edition features a bright yellow rotor paired with green strap accents, while the Nature edition combines a green rotor with purple and red strap elements. The Water edition creates visual contrast through various shades of blue applied to both the rotor and strap. All three variants include a secondary white strap option, providing wearers with flexibility in styling their timepiece.
Ilori's distinctive design language permeates every aspect of the watch's aesthetic details. The dial numbers bear his unique typographic style, while the strap features embossed patterns that reference his recurring tree motif—a powerful symbol representing patience and growth in his artistic vocabulary. The rotor, precision-engineered from lightweight titanium and finished with anodized coloring, reveals an intricate tree pattern that catches and reflects light with each movement of the wearer's wrist. This design element is further enhanced by the etched phrase "Grow Your Dreams" that appears on the component.
While the M.A.D.1S platform is already familiar to serious watch collectors, Ilori's collaboration introduces several innovative technical features. The watches incorporate HyCeram, an advanced liquid ceramic material that hardens when exposed to heat, allowing color to be integrated directly into the bezel structure. This material is then finished through meticulous hand-polishing techniques. Beneath the movement mechanism, an aluminum baseplate has been stamped with textural wave patterns, creating a dynamic three-dimensional effect that shifts and changes appearance under different lighting conditions.
The mechanical foundation of these timepieces remains the slim LaJoux-Perret calibre that was first introduced with the M.A.D.1S during Geneva Watch Days 2024. This high-performance movement features a specially re-engineered rotor designed to balance both mechanical intricacy and long-term durability. The result is a timepiece that successfully merges technical precision with bold artistic expression.
For Ilori, design has always served as a vehicle for storytelling, community building, and spreading hope. His diverse portfolio includes large-scale public projects such as playgrounds and bridges, as well as more intimate human-scale works including furniture and fashion pieces. Throughout all his work runs a consistent belief that everyday life can be fundamentally transformed through the strategic use of color and joy. "I've always been obsessed with trees," Ilori explains. "Harvesting and growing them because you invest time in it. It's pouring love into something you care about, and that starts a conversation. It's the same for this process, and the way of thinking behind it with Max. You have to be patient and harvest a watch. There are similarities between our universes. Typically, mine are very public, but there's something very private and public about a watch. Everyone sees it, but it's you who has that connection with it."
The collection's colorful rubber straps reflect Ilori's characteristically playful approach to design, while the HyCeram ceramic details represent a technical achievement in bringing vibrant color directly into the watch's structural elements. This collaboration marks a significant milestone in both artists' careers, demonstrating how traditional Swiss watchmaking can be revitalized through contemporary artistic vision while maintaining the technical excellence for which the industry is renowned.
