Christie’s exhibition of Wallace Chan Jewellery comes to London

A chance to see one of the largest cut black diamonds in the world is just one of the reasons to visit  Christie’s exhibition ‘The Wheel of Time’ of Wallace Chan’s jewellery in London. This is a 50-year retrospective celebrating the artist’s high jewellery masterpieces and the titanium sculptures he is famed for. Mark your diaries for 4-10th September at Christies, King Street in London.

Christie’s exquisite exhibition of Wallace Chan jewellery

The Wheel of Time exhibition at Christie’s King Street features an extraordinary array of remarkable jewellery pieces by the Chinese jewellery creator and visual artist, Wallace Chan, known for his colourful stones and sculptures set creatively in vibrant titanium.  It is the most significant exhibition of Chan’s work to be shown in Europe, possibly the world, and features 150 jewellery creations and six titanium sculptures, including unseen works.

Don’t miss: the World’s Biggest Cut Black Diamond

A highlight is The ‘Legend of the Colour Black’, a shoulder brooch, showcasing one of the largest known cut black diamonds in the world as the centre stone. Weighing in at 312 carats, alongside silver grey diamonds, crystal sapphire, black agate, titanium and the Wallace Chan Porcelain, his own material, which is purported to be five times stronger than steel.

Based on this, we predict that shoulder brooches are set to become a thing! 

A Labour of Love, and Time

Why The Wheel of Time? The exhibition name evokes Chan’s labour-intensive working methods, requiring phenomenal craftmanship and attention to detail. His art encompasses traditional aspects of Chinese aesthetics, combined with a passion for his working materials, the skills required employed in carving them, and the element of time involved in their creation. 

A perspective from Wallace Chan 

The Hong-Kong based, self-trained artist, who started his career as a carver in 1973, said: "In the blink of an eye, half a century has flown by. I am humbled by the opportunity to present my largest exhibition in Europe at Christie's in London. My heartfelt thanks go to Christie's for supporting my creative journey throughout the years and across the globe, and my collectors for loaning the pieces. Time is an eternal wheel that rotates for infinity with neither beginning nor end. In the creative process, time is a theme so intangible, yet omnificent." 

What does Christie’s say about Wallace Chan? 

François Curiel, Chairman, Christie's Europe sums it up: "A deeply philosophical man, Wallace infuses his jewels with Oriental spiritualism. This is the motif which he spends his entire creative life interpreting and reinterpreting, experimenting with endless combinations of gemstones, mediums, styles, aesthetics, and executed in his world-renowned techniques."

Wallace Chan, The Wheel of Time, Five Decades of Art Creation. 4-10 September 2023, Christie’s King Street, London SW1