Writing by Avantelier, Photo｜proofreading by MuseLi-Q team
Previously we introduced Nada Ghazal, a Lebanese jewellery designer, whose jewellery has a strong exotic atmosphere, elegant and mysterious, as well as integrates local craftsmanship. In this chapter, we are going to introduce a Chinese jewellery designer brand, MuseLi-Q. Qiang’s pieces have won internationally renowned awards including Goldsmiths’ Craft and Design Council Awards in 2021 and 2022; the Award for the Most Popular Design in China-Italy Youth Future Fashion Design Competition 2021, and it has featured in exhibitions in Switzerland, Italy, China, the United Kingdom, America, Australia, and Hungary.
We saw her jewellery collection in 2021. Qiang introduced the all inspiration details and how hard had been working on those pieces and so on. Her eyes in the dark evening were shiny and ambitious. That evening, her “delicious” jewellery (chocolate collection) was the other main item that highlighted the darkness, especially since it was after dinner time. We feel wanted dessert after she showcased her jewellery to us. We believe you might feel the same way after seeing her jewellery and have an inadvertently smile too.
This year, we reached out to her again through only emails and messages instead of meeting up in person, because she is in China for a short business trip at the moment. The good news is she still works on her jewellery business, continuing to exhibit her new collection to the world. Furthermore, she is going to launch the sustainable jewellery collection this Autumn. We will keep following up on her latest news to you.
A brief about Qiang Li (Helen), she is a jewellery and product designer & artist. She was born in China and studied Industrial Design (BA) and (MA) and followed this with an MA (Jewellery and Metal) at the Royal College of Art. She currently lives in London working to establish her jewellery brand alongside a position as a part-time Research Fellow at Monash University-Suzhou, China.
She founded MuseLi-Q jewellery in the UK in 2021, which integrates Eastern and Western cultural elements to explore deeper human instincts and appetites of hedonism through fun and quirky fine jewellery creations. Subtle concepts are translated as appealing designs to be crafted with exceptional attention to detail, capturing the emotional joy and surprise that jewellery brings.
Q: What are the biggest challenges for you on this project? How did you solve the issues?
L: When I founded my brand, developing income by finding outlets for my work and building a reputation is very difficult at the start. How to balance art and design with commercial considerations is also very challenging. I’m still working on this stage, I participate in exhibitions and competitions to both keep creative and to keep my brand on view.
“Keep your feet on the ground and be patient, because you can’t get everything when you want it. By Qiang Li”
Q: What’s your plan for this year? Does the plan (project) relate to sustainability?
L: I want to build up collections and move to a higher part of the market this year, and I’m in the process of developing with collaborative partners a sustainable jewellery collection to be launched in September this year.
