As a tribute to Bian Lian, the art of face-changing of the Sichuan Opera, the new Tambour Opera Automata features an on-demand artistic performance, where the dragon’s head rises to reveal the jumping hours while its tail indicates the retrograde minutes.
At the push of the button at 2 o’clock on the mask design comes to life and its expressions change as well displaying the time through intricate movements of the face and the sweep of a fan and movement of a dragons tail.
These additional features of Chinese culture have also been incorporated into the design. The dragon, previously mentioned, is traditionally associated with Chinese emperors, the fan is a sign of wisdom and the gourd protects against evil spirits.
Lastly the unlucky number 4 in Chinese culture has been replaced by the Louis Vuitton Monogram flower.
