The Moxie Series: Fiona Ji

As you’ve come from a family of Chinese antique dealers, what importance do antiques play in your life?

It is hard to describe what role antiques play or how important they were while I was growing up. During my childhood, because of my father’s job, our house was filled with antique arts such as Buddha statues, ancient Chinese paintings, and jade carvings. …… Therefore, I see them as natural existence. At that time, I did not understood their value, but I did know that I must visit museums and art galleries when travelling to new cities and thought that everyone should have antique arts at home.  For me, artwork is more of a lifestyle than collectibles with high monetary value.

作为来自家庭卖古董的艺术家，古董艺术品在你成长过程中有什么样的重要性？

很难描述，古董在我的成长过程中扮演着什么样的角色或者说有多重要，因为父亲工作的缘故，从小家里就到处摆满了古董艺术品，比如佛像，中国古画，玉雕摆件……所以，他们对我来说就是理所当然的存在，那时候我还不懂他们的价值，只是觉得旅行去陌生的城市，博物馆和美术馆是一定要去的，每个人的家里都一定要有古董艺术品。我想他们构建了我的审美观和生活态度。对我来说，艺术品不止是价值连城的收藏品，更是一种生活方式。

Who are your creative role models?

There is a very old-fashioned soul residing in my body. I love the painter Edward Hopper, and have his painting in my bedroom, though just a replica. His paintings always have a power of silence: without bright colors and complicated lines, each frame of his work is like a story about loneliness, full of drama. In addition, Axel Vervoordt, an interior designer, collector and antique dealer, buys artworks and real estate around world and transforms them into unique styles. He is well known for his usage of “Wabi Sabi”, an aesthetic style coming from the appearance of old objects and beauty of time. If I need to summarize the reasons of why I like them, it is their abandonment of contemporary and popular styles and adherence to creating their own styles. It feels like a new world when one enters the world of arts they created. I believe you should stick with one style once fall in love with it.  In this way can the world fill with more things you like.

哪些艺术家最启发你的灵感？

在我身体里面住着一个非常old－fashioned的灵魂。我很喜欢画家Edward Hopper，现在家里卧室就挂着他的一幅画，当然是复刻版。他的画总是有一种安静力量，并没有明亮的色彩和复杂的线条，但是每一帧画面都像一个关于孤独的故事，充满戏剧化。另外，艺术家Axel Vervoordt，他既是室内设计师也是收藏家和古董商。他全世界购买自己喜欢的艺术品和房产，改造成独特的风格，其中最受瞩目的就是他对“侘寂”美学风格运用（从老旧的物体外表下，显露出的一种充满岁月感的美）。如果要总结喜欢他们的原因，我想就是他们都抛弃了时代流行风格，只坚持自己喜欢的创作，并且一旦你进入他们营造的艺术品中，就像进入一个新世界。如果你喜欢一种风格，就应该坚持下去，这样这个世界才会有更多你喜欢的东西。

With fast fashion’s rapidly changing trends and cheap materials, why is it important to design with traditional styles and materials, such as jade and gemstones?

To be honest, I do often buy more affordable jewelry, which is indeed very good-looking and at the same time meets women’s want for new styles in their jewelry box. These fast fashion jewelries are pragmatic choices for many younger women. However, I believe girls will grow up and start to think about the meanings of things they purchase besides pure monetary value. My primary principle of shopping is “beauty”; I have to find it particularly pretty at first glance. Secondly, I want it to be able to showcase my personality. Thirdly, it has to carry values in design, materiality and craftsmanship. The latter two may not be achieved by low-price and fast-moving jewelries. Though my jewelry is not for everyone, nor will it cater to the current fashion, I will always insist on my own style.

你对快消饰品有什么看法？这个看法如何影响你购买饰品的原则？

坦白说我自己也会常常购买很多便宜的首饰，确实很多很好看，还能满足女生对饰品数量的要求，很多戴几次就不要了，常保新鲜感。尤其对年轻女生来说，这些快时尚首饰是非常实用的选择。但我想小女生总会长大，会开始思考自己买进的每一件东西的价值除了是用货币来衡量以外其他的意义。对我来说购物第一原则就是“美”，首先我要觉得它特别好看。第二就是我希望通过它来展示我的个性。第三就是它本身所承载了一些价值，包括设计和材质工艺。后面这两点可能是廉价快消首饰无法达到的。我的首饰可能无法被所有人喜欢，也不会去迎合当下的流行，但是会一直坚持自己。