Marking the end of winter and the start of the spring season, festival goers will celebrate the Chinese New Year around the world this week to welcome the Year of the Snake. Spanish luxury fashion house LOEWE is ringing in the holiday with a new collection paying tribute to the ancient art technique of Chinese cloisonné.
Chinese craft and mythology is woven throughout the capsule in the signature leather work of the Flamenco bag, masterfully crafted with 250 leather trimmings and 2,663 stitches. Meanwhile, new clutches take the form of clouds and coiled snakes and incorporate jewelry-like snake chains and cloud motifs in the Puzzle bags and Pebble Bucket bags. Cloisonné motifs are visible throughout the collection, which also includes ready-to-wear, shoes and accessories.
LOEWE partnered with Xiong Songtao, a master of Chinese arts and crafts and a third-generation enameller, to evoke the snake’s symbolization of wisdom, intuition and intelligence in Chinese astrology. Songtao created necklaces with cloisonné pendants, as well as a nest bag adorned with a snake head and lotus cloisonné detailing.
The practice of cloisonné in China dates back to the early 14th century. The decorative technique uses metal vessels and colored glass to create designs that are pasted or soldered onto metal, often incorporating copper or bronze. Known for its vibrant colours and intricate patterns, motifs and shapes, the enamel technique was traditionally employed by the royal court.
The collection marks the continuation of a tradition for the Spanish luxury fashion house. In 2023, LOEWE reimagined its Bunny Bag for Year of the Rabbit collection. Last year, the brand commissioned master jade carvers Xiaojin Yin, Qijing Qiu and Lei Cheng to create limited-edition pendants, each evoking the goodness, prosperity, and luck symbolized by the ancient technique of jade sculpture.
A short film titled “Spring Awakening: Dance of the Snake,” accompanies the collection, highlighting Chinese tradition in contemporary dance, shadow puppetry and kite making. Chinese dancer Xie Xin stars in the film’s storyline about a lonely snake who is welcomed by other forest animals. The film’s intricate shadow puppetry and snake props are the product of masterminds Danno and Zhang Xiaodong, who bring Chinese culture to life.
The collection is available now at loewe.com and at Loewe’s Design District store, located at 110 NE 39th St Unit 102 and 202. Check out the collection from Saturday to Monday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 12 to 6 p.m.
