To celebrate the Chinese New Year 2025, the house Hennessy, a pillar of the art of cognac, meets Shutting Qiu, the excellence of Haute Couture.
The captivating marriage of tradition and modernity was orchestrated by the Art Agency Somexing : a masterful collaboration between Maison Hennessy and Chinese fashion designer Shuting Qiu.
This unprecedented alliance between the illustrious cognac house and the daring couturier embodies an avant-garde vision of luxury, where heritage and innovation converse in a burst of vibrant colors and textures.
The first female designer to collaborate with Hennessy, Shuting Qiu pays homage to her cultural heritage by creating strikingly rich patterns that enhance the Maison's iconic decanters. By merging ancestral Chinese craftsmanship with the timeless elegance of Hennessy, this exclusive collection offers a unique sensory and aesthetic experience, combining the audacity of fashion with the depth of cognac expertise.
Three Creations, Three Expressions of Luxury
VSOP – The Energy of Youth
The VSOP edition captures the vibrant and dynamic spirit of youth. Shuting Qiu imagines a whirlwind of vibrant floral patterns and stylized snake silhouettes, merging Hawaiian and Chinese influences in a chromatic festival dominated by red. An ode to vitality and modernity, embodying renewal and the transmission of a heritage.
XO – Audacity and Depth
The XO edition is distinguished by a sophisticated interplay of deep reds, luminous golds, and intense blues, punctuated by diamond patterns inspired by Chinese craftsmanship. Here, the snake seamlessly blends into the shapes, evoking the eternal cycle of transformation and metamorphosis. Every detail conveys a vision of power and timeless elegance.
Paradise – The Quintessence of Elegance
The Paradis edition is a true liquid sculpture. Enhanced by an intense red and a raised texture, the decanter is adorned with a supple leather collar, embodying the rebirth of the serpent in a poetic and graceful dance. This delicate and sculptural creation reflects a quest for the absolute, where each nuance of light and material celebrates the art of cognac in its most refined expression.
A Collection Inspired by Metamorphosis
entitled Reimagination, this collection celebrates the snake, a universal symbol of transformation and renewal. Through abstract and dynamic interpretations, the mythical animal is drawn in hypnotic undulations on the carafes, intertwined with flamboyant patterns inspired by traditional Chinese brocades. Each piece becomes a work of art, capturing the energy of a cycle that constantly reinvents itself.
This collaboration marks a turning point for Hennessy, which, historically linked to the visual arts, is opening a new chapter by partnering with an iconic fashion figure. This bold choice reflects the Maison's desire to explore new expressions of luxury and appeal to a generation of aesthetes, at the intersection of art, design, and contemporary culture.
The Universe of Shuting Qiu: A Dialogue between Tradition and Modernity
Originally from Hangzhou and now based in Shanghai, Shuting Qiu draws on the richness of her textile heritage to reinvent floral patterns and textures evocative of snake scales. Inspired by ancestral jacquard fabrics and brocades, she brings a dreamlike and vibrant dimension to the famous Hennessy VSOP, XO, and Paradis cognac decanters.
Each edition is adorned with flamboyant red, a lucky color in China, and reveals a unique story where the art of detail meets a bold interpretation of movement and fluidity. Echoing Hennessy's roots, the silhouette of the snake seems to dance across the patterns, evoking the meandering Charente River, the birthplace of cognac.
Artist Shuting Qiu embodies an ultra-artistic and expressive fashion, where textile experimentation meets an explosion of color and pattern. Her style is instantly recognizable thanks to its sophisticated prints, rich fabrics, and bold silhouettes, creating a vision of femininity that is at once romantic, avant-garde, and exuberant.
His work fits perfectly into the world of contemporary luxury, where traditional know-how meets stylistic innovation.
A Work of Art in Its Own Right: Haute Couture Tapestry
To complete this exceptional collection, Shuting Qiu has created a unique double-sided tapestry, a centerpiece of this collaboration. In a subtle interplay of textures and reliefs, this textile work echoes traditional Chinese brocades and embroidery, while evoking the renewing of a snake's skin.
Like a living tableau, this work illustrates the epic tale of the mythical reptile as it molts and flourishes in a vibrant, magical landscape, where the raised embroidered flower petals symbolize the promise of a colorful spring. Red and gold blend in a perfect alchemy, embodying both heritage and the boldness of renewal.
With this collaboration, Hennessy and Shuting Qiu are redefining the codes of contemporary luxury. Between tradition and modernity, refinement and audacity, Reimagination embodies a masterful fusion where the art of cognac meets the excellence of fashion.
At the dawn of the Year of the Snake, this collection celebrates a metamorphosis, a sensory and artistic journey where each cognac decanter becomes iconic. More than a tribute to beauty and art, this limited edition ushers in a new era, where emotion and creation are one.
Patrick Koune
Visuals: Hennessy
