Internationally renowned for its exquisite craftsmanship, CINDY CHAO The Art Jewel has been recognized by three leading international museums for its artistic and collectible jewelry. This April, CINDY CHAO is thrilled to present “The Gem Art Collection”, a new collection of 34 rare colored diamonds in various colors: yellow, pink, blue, green and orange diamonds. The collection is rare in the industry in terms of quantity, color grading, carat weight, and quality of colored diamonds.
LARRY’S LIST had a conversation with jewelry artist Cindy Chao on the highlights from this latest Gem Art Collection, the cultural and investment value of rare colored diamonds, how independent jewelry artist has increased the visibility of Eastern culture in the jewelry world, and what makes an independent jewelry artist successful.
The Gem Art Collection is an exemplary collection in terms of color grading, carat weight, quality and quantity of fancy colored diamonds. Can you tell us more about this collection, from the materials to the craftsmanship? How did the idea of creating The Gem Art Collection come about?
For the first time last year, CINDY CHAO The Art Jewel launched the “Pink Legacy”, a collection featuring rare gemstones. The collection offers a wide range of precious pink and red diamonds in various shades, cuts, and carats. We have seen an increase in interest from Chinese jewelry collectors in fancy colored diamonds, and it has gradually developed into a collecting and investment sector in the mainland Chinese market.
This year, we have launched “The Gem Art Collection”, a collection of rare fancy colored diamonds that we have been planning and sourcing from around the world since last year, with the aim of presenting to collectors a selection of diamonds in a wide variety of colors of great quality. This is an opportunity for collectors in China to see the world’s finest colored diamonds.
Color somehow determines the value of diamond, can you share with us the color highlights of The Gem Art Collection?
The Gem Art Collection features a total of 34 colored diamonds. In addition to yellow and pink diamonds, there are also rare blue, green, and orange diamonds. We hope to present a “rainbow of diamonds”.
There are nine extremely rare blue diamonds, six of which are the finest Fancy Vivid Blue, and a rare pair of waterdrop-shaped blue diamonds set in architectural earrings. There are also three orange diamonds and two green diamonds, each of which is a unique shade of brilliance.
This time, there is a top yellow diamond weighing 88.88 carats in the rarest shade of fancy vivid yellow. A cushion-shaped yellow diamond with a radiant cut, it reflects a stunningly soft golden light. In addition to this heavyweight yellow diamond, there are four other yellow diamonds in the collection weighing over 10 carats, and four pink diamonds over 5 carats.
The collection also features several cuts in special shapes, including emerald (4), oval (2) and heart (5), which are technically difficult to cut, especially the emerald cut, which is rare in fancy colored diamonds. The color and clarity of the diamonds must be extremely high because the diamond plane of this cut can be seen as a stepped line inside the diamond.
What are the aesthetic and artistic values of The Gem Art Collection, a collection that goes beyond the functional aspect of wearing? What are the highlights of the collection?
With the launch of The Gem Art Collection, I do not only want to present rare colored diamonds, but also to create art jewel creations through the finest European jewelry craftsmanship. By placing precious fancy colored diamonds in a dazzling artistic context, we are able to give them a cultural value that will be passed on for generations to come. In this 30-piece Gem Art Collection, you will find the classic Ribbon Collection, the Architecture Collection, the Four Seasons Collection, and the Rose Collection, giving a new artistic interpretation to fancy colored diamonds. The artistic essence of “architecture, sculpturalism and vitality”, which I have always maintained, is present throughout the collection.
As I begin my work with wax sculpture, I transform the new design of jewelry in my mind and carve it into a three-dimensional, organic wax mold. As a result, you can see a strong sense of sculpture and dimensionality in the work. The undulation of ribbons in bows, the organic curves of architectural collection, the sinuous branches of trees. The color and brilliance of the colored diamonds are enhanced by the color matching of the diamonds and stones and the three-dimensional 360-degree pave setting that accentuates the main stone. Each creation is a collectible art piece and an heirloom to be passed down from generation to generation.
As a jewelry artist, what do you see as the heritage value and significance of rare colored diamonds? And what is the investment value of rare gems?
Formed from carbon under high pressure and temperature over hundreds of millions of years, diamonds can be described as a marvelous masterpiece of nature and time. During the formation process, the hand of nature can change the color of a diamond by adding just a little bit of a non-carbon element to create a rare fancy colored diamond. Fancy colored diamonds are the precious stones that I often use in my work.
Unlike normal diamonds, which are pure and clear, fancy colored diamonds have a brilliant color that gives them a fascinating personality and character. When I select a fancy colored diamond, I often discover the unique beauty of the color that is unique to each fancy colored diamond from different angles and think about how I can make that fancy colored diamond stand out in my jewelry creations. I think about how to tell its story and bring it to life.
Only one in every 10,000 natural diamonds can be called a “fancy colored diamond”. The natural rarity of it makes owning a unique fancy colored diamond akin to owning a piece of nature and the history of the earth. For collectors of fancy colored diamond art jewelry, they are also collecting a piece of history and culture.
Fancy colored diamonds are a portable tangible asset, small in size but of great value. For centuries, they have also been treasured by generations of European royalty. Because of their extreme rarity, fancy colored diamonds have a proven ability to retain their value. In recent years, there has also been a growing interest in the high return from investment and the stability of the value of fancy colored diamonds against risk. They have gradually developed into a new type of long-term investment.
Can you share with us some of your favorite pieces from the collection? And if from a collecting point of view, can you share with us some tips on collecting colored diamonds?
As mentioned earlier, colored diamonds are very precious stones that I often choose for my creations. I once created a “Red Diamond Butterfly Brooch” from The Black Label Masterpiece for a collector who loves fancy colored diamonds. The collectors were a couple. The husband works in finance and wanted to collect a rare diamond as a way of passing on his assets. We searched for this extremely rare 10-carat red diamond on the market, while the wife, who favors the art and creativity of jewelry, asked us to create a unique piece of art. As they had collected paintings by Zao Wou-Ki and Changyu for years, I was inspired by the rendering method used in Eastern ink painting and the Western impressionist style, with a lighter, brighter color and a more elegant and fluid sculptural structure. In addition to the 10-carat red diamond at the center of the butterfly’s body, the butterfly wings are set with a gradation of nearly 1,600 yellow diamonds totaling 67 carats in over 16 shades, the traditional style of oriental paintings is evident in the work. The work is both an art and investment piece, and the collector couple loved it when they received it.
I think collecting is very personal. The only way to make a collection meaningful to a collector is to be truly invested in it and to understand what makes it special, for example, the story behind the artworks; and to be able to truly love it, appreciate it. The same applies to collecting art jewelry, which requires an understanding of the various quality standards of colored diamonds. This is one of the reasons why we are launching The Gem Art Collection—we hope that colored diamond collectors in China will be able to appreciate the variety of colors, shades, cuts, and carats, as well as the artistic beauty that is presented in the overall design, and to experience the unique beauty of this collection.
How do you think independent jewelry artists can stand out in the high jewelry world?
The creative landscape of the jewelry industry has changed a lot in the last 20 years. In the past, the definition of jewelry might have been confined to jewelry and accessories, and many Asian collectors were still unable to understand what “art jewelry” was. But to this day, the long history of jewelry art in the West in the past has brought a lot of learning inspiration to collectors and jewelry designers in the East. Jewelry is no longer just an accessory, but can be an art form created through gemstones. With the growing interest in Oriental aesthetics in the Western market, more and more independent jewelry designers are emerging worldwide. Many of them are artists with Chinese or Asian backgrounds, incorporating their own unique cultural tastes or creative philosophies into their work. This has increased the visibility and influence of Eastern culture in the jewelry world and enriched the landscape of an industry traditionally dominated by centuries-old Western brands.
I believe that the possibilities for jewelry design are infinite and boundless. Likewise, I am constantly experimenting with new materials, new technologies and techniques to refine the parts of my work that were not technically possible in the past. I think the courage to break free from the shackles of tradition, to broaden the boundaries of jewelry art, and to take up the challenge of innovation are the ingredients for an independent jewelry artist to gain recognition in this field.
All images: courtesy of CINDY CHAO The Art Jewel
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