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As the daughter of an artist and the granddaughter of an architect, design is intrinsic to Jiang Qiong Er, and her Shanghai roots made bamboo an organic source of inspiration. “Bamboo bends but does not break. It whispers, trembles, filters the light, and plays with shadow,” says Jiang Qiong Er. “Timeless. It may seem fragile, yet it provides scaffolding for the world’s tallest skyscrapers.” In particular, the artist identified and drew inspiration from four of bamboo’s melodies: integrity, resilience, simplicity and harmony.
Steeped in tradition yet anchored in modernity, the collection dons eye-catching, joyous hues that complement its bold shapes. The bright coral shade is symbolic in Asia, while celadon is similar to the color of the earliest pieces of Chinese porcelain.
The collection includes a sofa, a screen, a console, cocktail tables, rugs and ceramics. Each piece is decidedly poetic in nature, from the console’s evocative bamboo patterned base to the sofa’s soft, plump headrests reminiscent of a fallen bamboo stem.
We particularly love the rugs for their abstract yet reminiscent print, which elicits visions of bamboo forests swaying in the wind. The screens’ slender shoot pattern allows plenty of light through while still dividing a space. The cocktail tables echo a transversal cross-section of bamboo, giving an organic shape while remaining extremely functional.
