Cover Opera Gallery Hong Kong hosted Chao’s high jewellery event, titled 'Meld in Light and Shade', this month (Photo: courtesy of Cindy Chao The Art Jewel)
Opera Gallery Hong Kong hosted Chao’s high jewellery event, titled 'Meld in Light and Shade', this month (Photo: courtesy of Cindy Chao The Art Jewel)
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Cindy Chao on her latest exhibition 'Meld in Light and Shade'
“So, do you like my latest butterfly?” Cindy Chao looks at us in earnest—but the answer is so obvious. Together, we’re taking a turn around Opera Gallery Hong Kong, one of the city’s leading venues for world-class modern art. Characterised by white walls and warm, wooden floors, the space hosted Chao’s high jewellery event, Meld in Light and Shade, in October. Cissy Wang, wife of Hollywood star Donnie Yen, and designer Victoria Tang were in attendance, as was actor-turned-director Stephen Fung, and celebrities Feiping Chang and Eleanor Lam Ho. In front of us, the 2023 Black Label Masterpiece I Amour Butterfly Brooch appears to levitate in a uniquely designed display case. This masterpiece is the tenth annual butterfly creation by Chao’s eponymous brand, Cindy Chao The Art Jewel, and it features three-dimensional, outstretched wings that are sculpted from lightweight titanium.
Each wafer-thin wing is decorated with a standout sugarloaf Colombian emerald, with the two stones weighing in at 29.18 and 27.52 carats. The body is composed of a single 8.31-carat type IIa marquise-cut diamond burrowed into polished ox horn, which took more than a year to source from Europe. Brimming with coloured diamonds in shades of mustard-brown and honey-yellow, the Amour Butterfly, which Chao describes as “magical”, is out of this world. When its gemstones catch the light, the entire insect shivers and shakes. This charming critter comes to life—and looks as though it could flap its wings and take flight at any moment, leaving a twinkling trail of aquamarines, sapphires, emeralds, garnets and tsavorites in its wake.
Chao explains that it’s important to find the finest-quality jewels when designing her wearable art. Positioned and paved onto breathtaking bases, kaleidoscopic gems are set using various techniques including pointillism pavé, which is characterised by combining dots of colour in bold and brilliant ways. “There’s no such thing as the perfect gemstone,” says Chao, although there’s no denying the celebrated artist has a penchant for verdant-green emeralds. “Gemstones are like people. They have their own personalities, their own attributes and their own spirits. When you find the right gemstone for a jewellery piece you’ve being envisioning for a long time, it’s a similar feeling to when you first meet somebody. There’s an inescapable connection. There’s a chemistry. The gemstone speaks to you.”
The Meld in Light and Shade exhibition (Photo: courtesy of Cindy Chao The Art Jewel)
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Chao’s recurring themes—the butterfly, the ribbon and floral motifs—are timeless and traditional, but her designs retain a distinctive Asian feel. “When clients and collectors come to my showroom in Hong Kong, they look at my flowers and ask: ‘What flower is that?’ My team always replies: ‘Well, it’s Cindy’s flower!’” She laughs and shakes her head. “You know, I think it’s important that, as a creator and an artist, I have my own way of interpreting my feelings.” Chao credits her family for her talent and drive. Her father was a successful sculptor and her grandfather a famous architect, and both influenced Chao’s aesthetic and decision to adopt her now-signature 18th-century wax-sculpting technique. “Art is very personal and it’s amazing when a client feels that emotion. Great art speaks to you and I hope I’m able to convey my emotion in my artwork.”
The 2023 Black Label Masterpiece I Amour Butterfly Brooch, which took five years and over 15,000 hours to complete, holds sentimental value. Chao sculpted the piece for a collector couple she knows. “This butterfly celebrates my deep friendship with this couple who have been collecting my jewellery since I first established my brand in 2004,” she says. “They’ve been supporting me and Cindy Chao The Art Jewel since the very beginning but they’ve never owned one of my butterflies. It’s very meaningful to me that I’m finally able to create one for them.” Chao’s jewellery is naturalistic and organic, and she playfully employs asymmetry to depict movement. “These days, everything is so high-tech. A lot of designers use computer techniques to ensure that their jewellery is perfectly proportioned—but I like that handmade touch.”
That’s not to say Chao’s mastery hasn’t evolved. In fact, her approach to designing haute joaillerie has metamorphosed considerably over the past two decades. “When I first started, I was so afraid that people wouldn’t have the opportunity to see how creative I could be. I had so many ideas, so when I designed those early pieces, I kept adding and adding to them. As I matured, I developed my expertise, my skillset and my life experience. I have so much more confidence.” As a result, her recent butterflies, although extravagant, are noticeably pared back. This is especially evident in the 2023 Black Label Masterpiece I Amour Butterfly Brooch’s calming colour palette and rustic elements. “I wanted to keep the Amour Butterfly Brooch simple but strong,” says Chao.
Meld in Light and Shade—Cindy Chao The Art Jewel 2023 Annual Butterfly Exhibition will be displayed at Opera Gallery Hong Kong until October 28. Find more information about Meld in Light and Shade here.
