Company chairwoman, ‘queen of chairs’
Print Edition
WANG Li is a business tycoon known in collector circles as “the queen of chairs.”
She is president of the China Media Group, president of the Meixin Red Wine Club, headmaster of a fly dance club and the chief executive of four companies. But her true passion is collecting vintage Shanghai-style furniture.
“My friends joke that the true motivation behind all my hard work is to earn enough money to pursue my passion,” she said. “I feel the old furniture represents the true character of Shanghai.”
Wang began her business career in Shanghai in 1997. She has started four companies involved in trading, exhibitions and event planning. The guest list for an international ball her company is hosting next month will include former British Prime Minister David Cameron.
Deep down, Wang said she is more an artist than a businesswoman.
“Sometimes I feel it’s a pity to die when there’s so much beauty left to be seen,” she said. “If more people appreciated art, the world would be a much better place.”
That is the passion underlying her furniture collection, which is believed to be the third largest of its kind in Shanghai.
“I encountered my first piece of old Shanghai-style furniture when looking for a desk for my new office,” she said. “I pay attention to details, like the fabric of curtains and the decorations on a wall. So at the time, I was looking for a desk that was not only sturdy but also beautifully designed. None met my standard until I saw an old Shanghai table.”
The desk was so stunning that she redecorated her office to blend with it.
Since then, Wang has collected over 4,000 pieces of furniture. She opened a nonprofit “experience furniture” store on Wanping Road, where people can take afternoon tea in an environment of yesteryear.
“It’s an attempt to bring vintage furniture back into people’s lives,” she said. “A granny came into my shop and cried because the room reminded her of her childhood. Sometimes children or foreign diplomats come to experience our cultural heritage. They all love it.”
Wang said the old Shanghai-style of furniture symbolizes the spirit of the modern city.
“This furniture may date back hundreds of years, and many pieces blend various Western styles to create something original,” she said. “That is what I mean by the spirit and character of this city.”
She used the chair she was sitting on as an example.
One can detect a hint of a simple American style in the cushion of the chair, which is cozy, soft and practical, but the shape of the chair is in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) style of rosewood. On the armrest are Roman-style columns and French-carved patterns.
“I feel the chair represents the multicultural character of Shanghai,” she said.
Born in north China’s Hebei Province in 1977, Wang watched a popular TV drama called “The Bund” as a child and dreamed of going to Shanghai.
“When I was little, my family brought a made-in-Shanghai bicycle, a Shanghai brand watch and a Shanghai brand sewing machine,” she said. “At the time, Shanghai brands were synonymous with good quality and left a deep impression on me. I regret that so many products nowadays can’t compare with them.”
She cited the novel “The Reincarnationist” by M. J. Rose to describe the motivation that draws people to a particular city or a particular period of time. The book is a combination of modern-day thriller, historical fiction and romance, switching between contemporary Rome and Rome 1,600 years ago.
“It’s a romantic explanation of my obsession with old Shanghai furniture,” she said.
Wang has collaborated with Louis Vuitton to design a chair as a piece of innovative Shanghai-style furniture. The chair takes cultural elements from India, East Asia and China, using bright and bold colors. Among the patterns on it are monkeys, turtles and birds, which symbolize power, longevity and blessing.
“Because it’s a chair, it needed to be durable as well as beautiful,” she said. “All the brass nails were inserted by hand, and the chair is made of hardwood.”
She said the younger generation is beginning to care about quality, looking for furniture of distinction instead of just settling for mass-produced, assemble-yourself pieces.
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