By Julius Zheng
Chen Weiyang, a Generation-Z jewellery designer based in China, has been working with the producer of Da Vinci’s Egg, the country’s renowned digital artwork NFT (non-fungible token).
Chen Weiyang, the designer
As the founder of Erdong Jewellery, Chen Weiyang is an award-winning jewellery designer, as well as a member of the League of Designers by Harper’s BAZAAR Jewelry (China), the renowned print magazine.
Chen’s works have featured in auctions by China Guardian Auctions and Poly Auction – leading Chinese auction houses – both in Hong Kong and mainland China.
He has been designing jewellery with diamonds, jadeite, coloured gemstones and ancient coins.
Besides the magnificent creations he designs for luxury events, Chen is looking to blend jewellery designs with casual fashion.
Da Vinci’s egg cufflink
Da Vinci’s Egg is a futuristic science fictional IP, featuring a giant egg-shape flying object.
Hangzhou Xing Ying Zhi Yuan Digital Technology Co., the producer of the NFT, has been working with various sectors in business and culture in China, including Century Mart, a prominent supermarket chain, China Aerospace Group, and the Writers’ Association of Zhejiang Province.
Da Vinci’s egg folding fan
The newly launched hybrid NFT by Chen Weiyang consists of both physical and digital versions of bespoke jewellery.
There are two series in the products, one looking to the past, and the other looking to the future.
The design of the jewellery lands in the metaverse in virtual form.
And yet everyone who buys the NFT can receive a physical jewellery product.
For Chen Weiyang, this is his first attempt to combine the visual tension of virtual jewellery with the reality of physical jewellery in terms of fantasy and feasibility.
Da Vinci’s egg necklace
The first series showcases nostalgia and retro style, featuring the Chinese icon of blue and white porcelain.
“Considering most collectors of digital artworks are men, I hoped to design a piece that would be more likely to be worn, and so I chose the cufflinks,” said Chen Weiyang.
He combined them with the blue and white pattern to convey ancient culture and achieved a harmony with the contemporary digital art collection.
In the design of the high-end brooch, Chen incorporates elements of the Chinese folding fan, which has a long history as the standard of ancient literati and officialdom.
Da Vinci’s egg pendant
Sacred exotic bird jewel
The other series of jewellery, of futuristic style, comes from the “Omnic Future” series.
“Since everything in the virtual space can be freely scaled and transformed, why not jewellery?” said Chen Weiyang.
With this concept in mind, he used “infinite possibilities” as the key word in the design to create a necklace that can be shortened or enlarged freely, and achieved multiple transformations in form through stackable elements.
Day, Night and Stars necklace
Through the new hybrid NFT series, Chen Weiyang and “Da Vinci’s Egg” joined forces to open the portal between the virtual and the real world, and delivered a splendid crossover solution.