TOUCH OF ROYALTY
Household items like the tea set (above) from The Imperial Collection traditionally tend to sell well for Royal Selangor. This one features the seals of Emperor Qianlong from the Qing Dynasty emblazoned on both sides of the square-shaped pewter teapot. The handles of the wooden tray are decorated with foliage motif from the original wooden box which the emperor used to store his seals. - PHOTO: ROYAL SELANGOR INTERNATIONAL
YOU can now take home treasures from Taiwan's world famous National Palace Museum (NPS) thanks to the latter's collaboration with pewter giant Royal Selangor.
The Imperial Collection features a range of home and personal accessories inspired by the artworks of various artifacts owned by emperors from the Southern Song to Qing Dynasties which are on display in the museum.
Each has been given a fresh interpretation by Royal Selangor's team of designers and appear on tabletop and decorative items such as tea set, tea caddy, tankard, tumbler, coaster and plaque, as well as personal accessories such as pendant and cufflinks.
The collection made its debut in Taipei last month and is now available here.
A different venture
It's the third time Royal Selangor has collaborated with a museum after similar successful partnerships with London's Victoria and Albert Museum and the Islamic Arts Museum Malaysia. Likewise, newly designed items were created instead of just producing replica pieces.
And despite already having collections like Four Seasons and Five Elements that already celebrate the beauty of Chinese art, this new venture with NPM is slightly different.
"The National Palace Museum has this huge archive of more than 670,000 artifacts with thousands of years of history so it was an opportunity to work with a really credible partner that has access to a rich treasure of Chinese art," says Royal Selangor's executive director, Chen Tien Yue.
He adds that NPM is extremely careful with who they work with so they were not about to let the rare opportunity slip away when it presented itself.
Carefully chosen items
And despite the museum's vast collection, Mr Chen reveals the creative process took only a year and items from different periods were chosen to reflect the richness of Chinese art and culture.
The tankard, which incidentally is one of Mr Chen's favourite item from the collection, for instance, features the intricately craved dragons that first appeared on an incense burner from the Ming Dynasty when craftsmanship in cloisonne was at its peak during the Jingtai period. Reinterpreted on the handle of the tankard, the detailed sculpturing is further enhanced as it contrasts with the clean minimalist body.
The tea set, another favourite of Mr Chen's, features the design and characters of the imperial seals of Emperor Qianlong from the Qing Dynasty emblazoned on both sides of the square-shaped pewter teapot. The handles of the wooden tray are decorated with foliage
motif from the original wooden box which the emperor used to store his seals.
Besides just household and decorative goods which traditionally perform strongly for Royal Selangor, personal accessories were also added to The Imperial Collection because that's a category that the company wants to grow and reach out to younger customers who are not homeowners but are looking for something for themselves or as gifts.
Mr Chen also believes the versatility of pewter can translate into something for everyone. "Some people might not know what pewter is used for because they might have grown up seeing a tankard which their father got for attending or speaking at a function so they see it as an ornamental thing," he explains. "But the bulk of our items are actually functional things that can be used like our tankards or cuff links."
To view and purchase The Imperial Collection, visit the Royal Selangor Showroom at Clarke Quay (3A River Valley Road, Clarke Quay #01-01, Singapore 179020)
