Is it any wonder that Chinese culture, with millennia of history, is a fabulous source of inspiration? The jewellery brand Qeelin, which was founded in Hong Kong and now has boutiques the world over, is one such champion of Chinese design. But more than just an aesthetic of the Orient, the brand is infusing classical motifs with stories and meaning to them that makes its jewels all the more enchanting.
Earlier this year, Qeelin introduced a new collection of fine jewellery—an elevated line with more exquisite and elaborate designs. Founder and creative director Dennis Chan names the Mogao and Yulin caves, in the northwestern Gansu province of China, as key creative inspirations. These grottoes are both more than 1,000 years old and house countless examples of art (like statues, murals, manuscripts and scrolls) that trace Buddhist, Chinese and Silk Road aesthetic influences.
The simple yet storied lucky gourd Wulu motif is perhaps Qeelin’s most famous bit of design. It has ancient associations of good health, thanks to sages of myth who carried gourds with magical panacea in them, and its shape resembles an eight, the most fortuitous number in Chinese culture. And, in 2004, it put the brand on the map after Maggie Cheung wore a Wulu necklace at the Cannes Film Festival. There are two key evolutions to the Wulu this year.
The first is the Wulu Fairy, which adds twists and turns to the design. It draws inspiration from Dunhuang murals of fairies performing the classical Chinese water sleeve dance, a form where long, flowing sleeves are gracefully and expressively twirled. This celestial dance is captured in the lines of diamond pavé white gold and enhanced with yellow diamond centre stones that embody elegant dynamism.
The second is a range of Wulu Shanshui jewels that transform the gourd silhouette into open canvases for expression. Its Shanshui name, literally translating to mountains and water, takes its cues from classical Chinese landscape painting. This particular art form is considered an expression of cultural and philosophical cultivation, distilling and encapsulating poignant meaning in simple landscapes—the world in a flower or wisdom in a tree.
Qeelin has crafted scenes of nature in three necklaces: marquise emeralds form pine trees growing atop towering mountains to represent resilience and longevity, ruby goldfish swimming in calm waters to symbolise abundance and prosperity, and a pair of pink sapphire magpies flitting about clouds to represent love and joy. What’s impressive is the continuity of details. The leaf, bubble and cloud details of each landscape ‘painting’ are continued as matching adornments on the chain, as if these scenes of life were bursting from their jewelled canvases.
Beyond the Wulu, Qeelin’s most enchanting designs are those that boldly fuse modern abstraction with literal expressions of classical Chinese motifs. The latest fine jewellery pieces from the Xi Xi line, inspired by the lion dance, do this well. The lions are detailed and nuanced—some with subtle touches of the northern or southern variety of the dance—and feature finely decorated faces and capes set with emeralds and rubies. The evocative scalloped and tiered cape motif transforms particularly well into a cocktail ring, distilling the strength and spirit of its inspiration into a stylish jewel.
The November ‘Nourish’ issue of Vogue Singapore is available online and on newsstands.
