[SPEAKING MANDARIN]
Kingfisher bird craft technology has already disappeared.
Nobody is really working on renovating it nowadays.
Moreover, the Kingfisher bird is close to being extinct,
and the trade of its feathers is prohibited.
The reason why I want to try this
is that the beauty of this empress crown
touched me the most from all the collection that came out
of the Ming Dynasty tomb.
The organization I used to work for
made one imitation of this crown immediately after it
was recovered in the tomb, so I have a very deep connection
to this item.
When I had my own studio, I was not
capable of finishing a piece like this
since it requires a lot of money.
Now, the collaboration with Zhaoyi
allows me to make my dream come true.
When we started, we had no place to find
Kingfisher feathers or qualified goldsmiths.
The following stories are mostly coincidences.
One of my classmates gave me a hint
that someone who used to work in this craft saved some feathers.
The feathers this person saved are only
enough for one crown like this.
I made up my mind to get these feathers
and use them on this crown.
My efforts paid me back.
That person finally agreed to use the feathers on my crown.
The original bases for the Kingfisher bird craft
from the tomb were not pure gold.
Only several dragons and the flowers inlaid with gemstones
were gold.
The rest were made of hard paper board or cloth board,
so it is actually very light and can be worn easily.
For better preservation, our imitation
uses gold for everything.
Five kilograms of gold was used on this piece.
It is really hard to wear this one.
When the model tried it on, she screamed.
In addition to the gold, there are many gemstones
and other decorations.
It is tremendously heavy.
We spent almost two years finishing it.
It was very hard to make this crown because we
couldn't see the original piece.
What we had in our hands were just photos.
[SPEAKING MANDARIN]
I'm very optimistic about the future market
of traditional styles.
I've seen many young girls wearing very fashionable
clothes while wearing a piece of jewelry
inherited from her mother or even grandmother.
They like the combination of traditional and modern.
It's very Chinese, and it makes me feel comfortable, too.
[SPEAKING MANDARIN]
The overseas market is the same.
Foreigners now pay a lot of attention
to our oriental culture and art.
They pay even more attention to the craftsmanship.
I'm very confident to see a tremendous development
of high end custom service in the jewelry industry in China.
[SPEAKING MANDARIN]
In my opinion, over the past two years,
I see more and more people choosing traditional jewelry.
Not just jewelry; fabrics have a similar trend
of going back to more traditional elements.
I do not see a big difference between domestic and
international markets in terms of this trend.
If you pay attention to the fashion shows in Paris,
you'd notice the existence of many traditional elements,
like Chinese embroidery, gemstone inlaying, et cetera.
Both the young and old generations
like traditional stuff.
If I have to give a proportion, I
would say youngsters are more likely to pick more
contemporary designs, but traditional design
does have its own position in the fashion world.
[SPEAKING MANDARIN]
First of all, we do a lot of public education
when we promote our products.
Secondly, the Gemological Association of China
has an education center.
They provide training for consumers,
as do a lot of professional magazines.
[SPEAKING MANDARIN]
Contemporary jewelry design education
provides different directions for students to pursue.
Diamond, colored stones, jadeite, et cetera,
all have their own design education programs.
[SPEAKING MANDARIN]
As far as I know, many design major students
go overseas to study design.
They learned a lot of ideas about modern design.
I think that it is necessary for them
to know more about contemporary concepts
because many top designers are famous for their combination
of oriental and Western elements.
The friction between these two worlds
usually creates the most beautiful fireworks.
We have to go out.
China also has a lot of contemporary concepts
and ideas.
Like painting, jewelry design is not isolated.
It needs to absorb nutrition from all other sister arts,
like drama, dancing, both domestic and international.
[SPEAKING MANDARIN]
I recommend students absorb nutrients
from all different types of arts, and at the same time,
do not forget to absorb the essence of their own culture.
If they can use traditional craftsmanship
on contemporary jewelry, it is the best way to stand out.
If you only attain skills, but do not create,
you are not going to be successful.
We talk about these old skills, but they are not the only thing
that we can learn.
We need to create more skills and technology
to keep making progress.
[SPEAKING MANDARIN]
The prosperity of a country relies not only on its economy,
but also on its cultural development.
I'm glad to see that our country leaders realize this and are
paying more attention to our cultural heritage.
I always think that culture is the very root
for every national identity.
If we lose all our traditions, there's
no way for us to be prosperous.