lsa Jin’s jewels are not adornments. They are a language, a memory, a manifestation for the future. They recount the subtleties of Chinese culture and the metamorphoses of a person on their journey through life. Her jewels speak of resilience and transformation, of what it is to be human, including our most poetic dimension. With mastery, she captures ephemeral truths in material form. From metal comes the lightness of a breeze. Titanium wings take flight. A precious stone becomes a fragment of memory that sits in the palm of the hand.

Elsa Jin grew up in China in the early 1970s, surrounded by shapes and volumes from an early age: “My father was a well-known architect. From being very young, every weekend we’d go off sketching in the countryside, drawing mountains, trees, everything there was to see in nature. That was a huge influence,” she explains.

Elsa Jin

As an art student, she studied painting but found her true medium in metal and precious stones. She started out by crafting pieces for herself and for a few friends, before making jewellery her career. That was in 2004. She has exhibited her work at the Florence Biennale in 2019, where she was awarded the Gold Medal for jewellery design, at the Paris Biennale in 2021 and at Couture Las Vegas, winning awards in 2021 and 2022.

Elsa Jin gives form to the invisible. Each of her pieces tells of the fragility of life and the persistence of memory. They are a fragment of eternity. She imagined the winged brooches in the Life series during the COVID-19 pandemic. Crafted in titanium and gemstones, they capture how she came through the trials of this period in four symbolic stages: anxiety, suffering, resilience and ultimately triumph, with freedom regained. She conceived of them during a retreat, sculpting her thoughts in the same way others commit their experiences to the pages of a diary.

Model Isabeli Fontana wears the Woman brooch at the 78th Cannes Film Festival. The original idea came from Klimt’s painting, The Three Ages of Woman.

©Getty images

We met Elsa Jin in May, at the GemGenève fair where we were drawn to one piece in particular. Woman is an impressive brooch or rather an assemblage of five brooches: five chrysanthemums in titanium set with precious stones. Inspired by Gustav Klimt’s painting The Three Ages of Woman, she imagined each flower as a depiction of a decade in a woman’s life. They are a tribute to the passing of time and to femininity. One of the brooches, representing a woman’s twenties, was worn by Isabelle Huppert on the red carpet at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.

Many of Elsa Jin’s pieces are in titanium, “because it is strong and can give form to my architectural, sculptural visions, and also because it is light for the person who wears it. We have workshops in Asia and Europe.”

Elsa Jin dialogues with time. Her remarkable creations invite us to reflect on memory, and what it means to live and love. Each of her pieces is an enigma, a silent question: what is beauty?

Europa Star Jewellery: The Woman brooch is an evocation of the different ages of a woman and the passing of time. What inspired you?

Elsa Jin: The original idea came from Klimt’s painting, The Three Ages of Woman. I’m in my fifties and the five flowers represent five decades in a woman’s life. Each flower is different and therefore a symbol of change, while the five emeralds represent a woman’s soul, which is constant. So it expresses change as well as continuity.

Your flowers bloom with advancing age whereas we generally consider that a woman blossoms in her youth. What did you want to say?

If you look carefully, you’ll see that every petal on the flower for the age of ten is intact. This represents childhood that hasn’t yet been damaged by everything around us, that hasn’t been shaped by emotional wounds. On the flower that represents 20, the edges of the petals have been nibbled, as though eaten by insects, but it also has the most striking form. Often, by the age of 20 we’ve experienced suffering but feel capable of starting anew. The flower for 30 has more angular petals, as this is the age when a woman has built a defence mechanism. She’s more open to outside forces and more serene, as though able to accept everything life brings. Then at the age of 40, the petals are softer. She’s learned to protect herself, to shield herself and be less emotive. At 50, she tries to live in harmony with her surroundings. Her heart is free but the imperfections are still there, perhaps more than ever. At that age we realise we can heal those parts of us that have been eaten away, in our childhood and at 20, 30 and 40. We repair the traumas of the past. We have reached an age where we can experience great inner peace.

Will you create brooches for the following decades?

Yes, of course, for 60, 70, 100! It could go on for ever. Five more flowers, starting with a red stone, a ruby or a spinel, at the centre, with petals that become gradually grey, then dark grey and ultimately black.

The Night Dance brooch with a flawless golden pearl. The design is inspired by a famous dance under the Tang dynasty in China, called the Whirl Dance.

©Elsa Jin

Time - past, present and future – is a prominent theme in your work. How important is it for you to express the passage of time?

Very important. The person I am today has been shaped by memories forged over time, and this is true for everyone. Every day of our past is anchored in our body in one form or another. I think this brooch can represent every woman’s life story.

The Mozi brooch resembles a splash of ink, captured mid-air. How did the design originate? As a mental image or did you paint it first?

That’s exactly what it depicts. This brooch is inspired by traditional Chinese calligraphy. It represents thick ink spilled across paper by the artist in an unconstrainted, spontaneous movement. I’m passionate about calligraphy and understand how ink behaves.

Could you tell us about the pearl in the Night Dance brooch?

It’s a flawless golden pearl, the one perfect large pearl I’ve found in years. The design is inspired by a famous dance under the Tang dynasty in China, called the Whirl Dance. It’s a dynamic piece that can be worn by a woman or a man.

The Mozi brooch is inspired by traditional Chinese calligraphy. It represents thick ink spilled across paper by the artist. Tahitian peacock green pearl, black diamonds, grey diamonds, emeralds.

©Elsa Jin

What did you dream of as a child?

Children in the West often have a clear vision of their future, whereas when I was growing up, our aspirations were more abstract. Everyone thought science was the most noble profession, but I was different. I wanted to be someone ordinary but completely free. My father told me that was the most difficult thing of all.

When did you decide to become a jewellery artist?

In 2004, when I was in my thirties. Prior to that, I made pieces for myself. They were the envy of my friends who would occasionally borrow them. They encouraged me to turn professional and in 2003 I thought “why not?”. By then I had the financial solidity to embark on such an adventure.

What about formal training? Did you study gemmology or jewellery-making?

I learned everything myself, without anyone’s help, motivated by a love of what I do. I started making different pieces at home, then set up my company, supported and encouraged by my friends. To begin with, they were the ones buying my jewellery, but as the business grew and I had to procure more materials, I needed a more organised structure. I felt I had a responsibility towards my customers and so I took the [Gemological Institute of America] Graduate Gemologist course in Shanghai.

What inspires you, creatively?

Anything relating to the visual arts. Design isn’t something you can do sitting at a desk. Before you begin to create, you can be exposed to the theatre, music, books, travel, all kinds of things. My father was very methodical in his guidance. He taught me architectural design. Already, as a teenager, I was helping him with his projects, drafting plans, elevations and sections. Which explains my jewellery’s architectural, sculptural appearance.

Nature seems to be another favourite inspiration.

You could say that, although I think it matters more that your creations mirror your thoughts. Historically, jewellers have shifted between naturalism and modernism. I believe nature is the ultimate designer. No-one can surpass it. Copying nature isn’t enough. You can take inspiration from natural shapes but you must incorporate your own ideas and philosophy.

How do you get that spark that brings your jewellery to life?

I like to work around themes that are relevant to today and for my creations to express a philosophy. My designs reflect the present moment. I create contemporary artworks using a jeweller’s materials to express myself. Take the Life series, for example. In 2020, when we were all confined to our homes, I felt I had to do something, that I had to express how I felt and keep a trace of this particular moment.

There is a certain autobiographical element in the Life series, maybe a form of catharsis. Transforming the challenges of COVID into something beautiful.

We saw how people reacted instinctively to this peculiar period. Initially, people were putting their lives on hold, staying at home, denied contact with others, but then, over time, they began to fight back, heal, and ultimately start afresh. It’s an entire process. The Life series documents the different emotional stages we went through during COVID-19: anxiety, suffering, resilience and triumph. I expressed this with stones such as sapphire, emerald, Padparadscha sapphire and spessartite garnet. I chose them because their colour matched the theme I had in mind and not just for their monetary value. We have a team who travel the world to buy the precious stones I need.

You’ve created an exceptional version of the Life brooch as well as a more wearable collection.

The original Life 2023 is set with a stunning 80-carat spessartite garnet. The smaller version retains all the energy of the original but is easier to wear. I envisage donating the original Life and Fireworks brooches to a museum at some future point.

Life 2023 brooch set with a stunning 80-carat spessartite garnet. The Life series documents the different emotional stages people went through during COVID-19: anxiety, suffering, resilience and triumph.

©Elsa Jin

Your creations tell stories and reflect your Chinese heritage. What aspects of this culture do you set out to convey?

People see Chinese culture as a series of symbols. They have a simplified perception whereas genuine Chinese culture is a way of thinking, which is what I want to express. Take the brooch I’m wearing. It’s designed as a rock, gongshi, that occurs naturally in Lake Tai. We call it the scholar’s stone. Every gongshi has been eroded by water and wind over thousands, possibly tens of thousands of years. It lacks the force of a mountain and has countless perforations yet there is something truly noble about it.

Adrian Brody has worn your brooches on the red carpet. How did that come about?

Initially through my agent but Adrian was so taken with my work, he contacted me directly after that.

Isabelle Huppert has also worn the original Life 2023 brooch.

That’s right. After wearing my jewellery in 2023, she signed a contract with a couture House, but she loves my creations and I’m sure will continue to wear them [which she did: at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, the French actress showcased the Woman brooch, Elsa Jin’s most recent creation, representing the spirit of a woman in her twenties].

What do you feel when you see actors wearing your creations?

There’s a Chinese proverb that says “birds of a feather flock together.” I admire the actors who come and see me. I feel we are kindred spirits.

What does jewellery represent in your eyes?

My designs reflect my thoughts on the present.

Is creativity possible without freedom?

Never. Freedom is life.