THOSE lucky enough to be in the Big Apple this summer could still make it to the wildly popular Metropolitan Museum of Art's Costume Institute exhibition, "China: Through The Looking Glass" exhibition. With a run extended till Sept 7, the eighth most popular exhibit ever at the museum comprises 150 dresses, gowns and costumes from 40 designers influenced by the beauty and artistry of China - from the chinoiserie concoctions of Paul Poiret and Yves Saint Laurent, a Gladwrap-tight cheongsam by John Galliano, to jewels by Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels and Bulgari.

But get this, the many rarefied pieces painstakingly curated for the blockbuster were all created by western designers. So it's about time that the imagination of Asian stylemeisters is similarly fuelled by the aesthetics, craftsmanship and history of the Middle Kingdom. And for Hong Kong jewellery designer Dickson Yewn, Chinese culture is the only influence he needs in his 15-year career.

"There is a rich 5,000-year history from which I can be inspired, but no one else seems to be wholeheartedly doing contemporary Chinese jewellery design at the forefront of luxury - funny, no?" says the 45-year-old creator of jewellery, who will be hosting a private showcase here this month. "Why do people nowadays create jewellery with only or mostly western influences? Don't they get even more bored?"