Olaolu Slawn has never been particularly interested in keeping his art where people expect to find it. The British-Nigerian artist has moved comfortably between canvases, fashion, streetwear, and cultural collaborations, building a visual language that feels deliberately loud, playful, and difficult to ignore. Now, he is taking that approach back to the wrist with “The Slawn x Rolex Multiverse,” a 12-piece collection of one-of-one customized Rolex watches created alongside a group of high-profile figures from across global culture.
The project marks a significant expansion of Slawn’s relationship with luxury watches. Rather than producing another small run around a single artwork, the artist has created an entire universe of individual pieces, with each watch designed in collaboration with a different cultural figure. The confirmed lineup ranges from football legends Ronaldinho and Mario Balotelli to rappers Gunna and Lil Yachty, with artists, designers, nightlife figures, and streetwear names also making appearances. The project website is set to launch on August 18, 2026, with the 12 watches scheduled for release individually throughout the month.
Inside “The Slawn x Rolex Multiverse”
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At the center of the project is an idea that feels particularly natural for Slawn: take an object already loaded with cultural meaning and make it personal.
Rolex watches have long occupied a distinctive place in luxury culture. They can represent achievement, wealth, taste, or simply a personal milestone. Slawn, however, has consistently approached watches less like traditional collectors’ objects and more like blank canvases. His previous customized Rolex releases demonstrated how dramatically a familiar timepiece can change when its dial becomes the primary medium for an artist’s imagination.
The new collection pushes that idea further. Instead of a single creative voice appearing across several watches, “The Slawn x Rolex Multiverse” gives each collaborator a distinct visual identity. The confirmed participants include Ronaldinho and Mario Balotelli from football, Gunna and Lil Yachty from rap, and Clint419, the founder of Corteiz. Japanese graphic designer VERDY, photographer and visual artist Gabriel Moses, artist Cedric Christie, nightlife entrepreneur David Grutman, and Nigerian skate collective Motherlan also form part of the lineup.
Two collaborators remain undisclosed, keeping a degree of mystery around the complete 12-watch project.
That variety is important. Slawn is not drawing from one corner of culture. The collection deliberately moves between sport, music, fashion, art, and nightlife, reflecting the increasingly blurred boundaries between those worlds.
It also mirrors Slawn’s own career.
The artist has built a reputation around crossing those same lines. His work has appeared in galleries, fashion projects, and cultural campaigns, while his collaborations have connected him with names including Lil Yachty and Skepta. His growing presence in the contemporary art world has also been bolstered by exhibitions with Saatchi Yates, which currently represents Slawn. There is, therefore, something fitting about a Rolex project that refuses to behave like a conventional watch collaboration.
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Why Slawn’s Rolex obsession matters
Slawn’s relationship with watches is not a recent marketing exercise. He has spoken openly about his fascination with them, describing watches as personal markers and collecting pieces from Rolex, Patek Philippe, Cartier, and other major names. British GQ previously profiled his collection, noting that his watches range from classic Rolex Datejusts to Patek Philippe models and G-Shocks.
That personal connection became especially visible in 2024 when Slawn collaborated on a limited series of customized Rolex Datejust 41 watches. The project transformed the traditional Datejust into a colorful canvas for his artwork. Each watch featured his distinctive graphic style, while the boxes and casebacks were also given individual touches. British GQ reported that the concept began with Slawn and watch specialists discussing how his artwork could be translated onto a Rolex dial.
The watches sold out within minutes. Other reports put the sell-out time at roughly four to four-and-a-half minutes, underlining just how quickly Slawn’s art had crossed into the luxury watch market.
That earlier success provides useful context for the Multiverse. Slawn is not simply putting his name on another luxury object. He has already demonstrated that there is an audience willing to treat his customized watches as collectible pieces in their own right.
The difference this time is scale and collaboration. Rather than asking buyers to connect with a single artwork, the Multiverse asks them to consider 12 distinct creative personalities. Every watch becomes a meeting point between Slawn and another figure.
A Rolex collection built around culture
Perhaps the most interesting aspect of “The Slawn x Rolex Multiverse” is the cast.
Gunna and Lil Yachty bring contemporary hip-hop into the project. Ronaldinho and Mario Balotelli add football pedigree. VERDY connects the collection to Japanese graphics and street culture, while Gabriel Moses brings photography and contemporary image-making into the mix.
Clint419 represents another important connection. As the founder of Corteiz, he belongs to a generation of British streetwear figures who have helped turn independent labels into global cultural movements.
Motherlan, meanwhile, adds a distinctly Nigerian dimension to the project. That combination makes the watches feel less like isolated luxury products and more like cultural documents. Each collaborator carries their own audience, aesthetic, and history. Put together, those identities create the “multiverse” Slawn is referring to.
It is also a reflection of where luxury itself has been heading. The traditional luxury watch industry has spent decades selling craftsmanship, heritage, and exclusivity. Those qualities still matter, but today’s collectors are increasingly interested in the cultural story attached to what they wear. A watch can be valuable because of its movement and materials, but its emotional value can come from who designed it, who wore it, or what community it represents.
Slawn understands that instinctively. His work has always operated somewhere between art and popular culture. Even his previous Rolex project demonstrated that a traditional luxury object could become more interesting when it was stripped of some of its seriousness and given a distinctly contemporary personality.
His latest project takes that philosophy to a much larger stage.
Featured image: @olaoluslawn/Instagram
