Spot the Designer - Beichen Guan/ UK

What did you want to be when you were a child?

When I was younger I wanted to become an artist, as a child I always liked to paint and sculpt.

When have you started creating jewelry? How did this passion come about?

I’ve always felt drawn to 3D sculptures and natural elements, and the more I learn about Chinese jewellery craftsmanship the more I’m able to express myself through jewellery. After I finished high school, I spent a year in Shanto China to study more about Chinese filigree, this is when I began my journey creating jewellery.

What was your first project or significant piece for you and from what point of view? 

‘Ultra Sparking White’ .

Materials : Silver, Fresh water pearl, Mother of pearl

To shape my personal experience of teeth whitening into wearable pieces made from moulds of dental paraphernalia. The collection echoes the subversive beauty of “black teeth” in some Asian cultures while questioning society’s obsession with flawless beauty. Black is a sign of decay, but it also represents the charcoal used in the process of whitening. The gradation of colours charts its own journey, playing between the binaries of black and white, the blemished and the impeccable. In their idiosyncratic way, the pieces re-image the peculiar language of intimacy.

- 2018, United Kingdom

How do you charge your batteries? What other passions and creative interests do you have?

Back home I like to sculpt with clay and paint, and when I travel I record the inspirations during the trip. It’s a good way to recharge my energy.

What does the connection between manufacturing tradition and contemporary design mean to you?

From a craftsman’s point of view, there’s part of traditional making technique I maintain to help us understand the root we came from, I won’t neglect the importance of the traditional manufacturing industry. The ideas of factory system and the new technology have actually improved my creativity and production process a lot. I think there’s big potential in combining contemporary design with the manufacturing tradition in a balanced way.

Which material have you not yet used is a temptation and a challenge for you?

As a Chinese designer, I always wanted to try more designs with the jade stone. There’s a lot of cultural meaning and stories behind this particular stone, so it will be a big challenge and responsibility for me to recreate or design the material in my way. It can be a long process but I’m working on it now.

How was the pandemic period for you as a jewelry designer?

I feel there was a lot of insecurity and hate in the world during the pandemic period. I found and learned that it’s hard to argue about what is right or wrong because we all see things from different perspectives. I learned to be less hard hearted when others have different thoughts and opinions. And as a designer, I like to bring my views and understanding of society into the jewellery I create.

How do you see the future of contemporary jewelry?

I think contemporary art jewellery is a mark of the time, it shows human’s creations, technology and visions at different time periods. Contemporary jewellery will change through trends of the times.

Find more about the designer Beichen Guan