Chinese Purse

Some pieces are meant to be held, others are meant to be looked at. This one is firmly the second kind. Shaped like a rounded, handled purse, its whole surface is given over to a deep relief scene: robed scholars gathered around a table beneath a pagoda roofline, with a meander border tracing the rim and handle like the metal fittings on an antique piece. It is a small sculpture that happens to borrow its silhouette from a handbag. The scene is lifted straight from the language of traditional Chinese carved lacquerware, where scholars, pavilions and clouds were cut into layer upon layer of cinnabar red. We have translated that same layered, high relief look into a single 3D printed piece in PLA+, which is what lets every fold of a sleeve and every roof tile hold its edge instead of blurring into a soft lump. Stand it on a bookshelf, a study desk or a display cabinet and it reads instantly as a conversation piece, the kind of object a guest picks up to turn over in their hands. It suits anyone drawn to Chinese art and history, and it makes a genuinely thoughtful gift for Lunar New Year, a housewarming or a milestone birthday. Printed to order in Australia in a matter of days. Our cinnabar style red is the closest match to the traditional lacquerware palette, though black, gold and bronze finishes are also available if you want a different mood on the shelf.