Most artists hope that their work will transcend the boundaries of material; few are prepared to mould light itself to ensure it. A dazzling new collaboration between Sequin Kay and Gerry Kinch sees the immortalisation of feminine icons achieved through sparkling, multidimensional portraits embellished with Swarovski crystals. Maisy Nichols, writing for THE REAL had the chance to interview Sequin and Gerry ahead of the collection’s reveal, delving into their artistic processes, enduring inspirations, and all things bright and bejewelled. The unveiling of the ICON COLLECTION itself brought a star studded audience to Sheesh in Mayfair where celebrities viewed their artwork a few days ago. Read on for an insight into their artistic process.
Gerry, what was it about Sequin and her work that initially pulled you into her style of art? Had you considered combining your paintings with textiles before?
Although I am essentially a traditional renaissance-style painter, I must say that I have worked with gold and silver leaf, but never anything quite like what Sequin does with her crystals. When I first saw Sequin’s work 9 or 10 years ago in her studio over Canary Wharf, I wasn’t sure what fascinated me about it at first. Then I realised it was the way the crystals reflected light, their energy, and how she applied them so delicately and intensely. Everything was so exacting. I always wondered if there was a way we could collaborate. The energy of the crystals motivated me to ask myself that question. As time went by, we kept saying we would do something together, but we never did. Then, when we met in Ibiza nearly two years ago, we decided it was finally time. The moment had come. It was time to mix the fusion—the fusion of traditional and contemporary art—because that’s what Sequin represents. She’s a contemporary artist, and she makes her work so unique with the crystals. My work was traditional; hers was modern. It was time to fuse the two, and that’s exactly what we’ve done. The rest is history.
Your collection features icons of the past century; would you ever create a portrait of an older figure in history? Or is photography too integral of an inspiration?
Although there are many great icons from this century and before, if I had to choose, my favourite icon would be Mozart. I’d love to paint his portrait in a magnificent, glittering, crystallised jacket or waistcoat. He’s not from this century—he’s quite a couple of hundred years old now. For me, it doesn’t matter if they’re modern icons; they don’t have to be from this century. It could be as far back as you like. But yes, Mozart would be at the top of my list. Liberace is another we’d like to work on because he lends himself so much to the glitter and crystals, and he is more recent. But Mozart would be the ideal icon to crystallise.
You feature such iconic women in your work, celebrities with millions of potential photos available. What has pulled you into the portraits that you specifically chose?
I feel like the images chose us. It had something to do with how the photographer captured the image and the fact that the portrait Gerry and I saw had many layers within it. As we looked at the images, we were thinking, “Wow, I can’t quite put my finger on it, but this has something that needs to be brought to life through painting and embellishing.” It’s a very intuitive and flowing experience when you go through images. In a way, you let them speak to you. That’s how I see art, photography, film, and media—things speak to you. It isn’t a predetermined choice; it’s intuition.
You’ve spoken previously about the extra dimension that crystals bring to your work. How did working with Swarovski enhance this, the company that not only supplied the jewels for Cleopatra, but is an iconic symbol of that period of Hollywood glamour?
Crystals bring electricity, life, glamour, and a reflective, three- or four-dimensional nature to the paintings. Working with Swarovski as a company has been extremely interesting because you get to understand the ideas and concepts behind their collection, behind the crystals, the colours, and the shapes. They all have different meanings and connotations, with such thought, care, and precision behind them. When you’re using certain colours and types of crystals, each one has a different meaning and feeling. Working with the company has been fantastic. They’ve supplied the crystals, but they haven’t sponsored it. We’ve been buying them directly.
Hollywood glamour and Elizabeth Taylor were key inspirations for us. She absolutely loved diamonds and jewels, so we wanted to make her into a piece of wall jewellery herself. That Cleopatra image was one that was bejewelled, and I feel like the crystals brought everything—and more—to this painting.
Sequin, are there any textiles that you’re still waiting to work with on as large a scale as the portraits?
There are so many textiles I’m eager to work with. I really want to explore caviar mesh, different types of metallic meshes, diamond sheeting, and lab-grown diamonds. These materials fascinate and intrigue me, and I feel they could add another layer of depth to my work. Blending and mixing different textiles within portraiture really excites me.
What do you feel is the relationship between the female subjects of the portraits and the addition of crystals? Is there something about crystals that feels innately connected with feminine power?
Crystals are definitely connected to feminine power, and they reflect a lot of light. These women were all stars in different ways. I feel that star quality—that celebrity presence, being in the public eye, in the flash of the camera—the crystals capture that. You almost get a shock when you see them, and you feel that star quality. The crystals bring the glitz, glamour, and light that these people, especially women like Diana, brought into the world. Even looking at portraits of Liberace and other celebrities who brought light into the world, they exude that feminine glamour alongside masculinity. It’s about the star quality, and the crystals represent the light these people brought to the world in all the ways they have.
What do you want viewers to feel when they look at the portraits?
I want viewers to feel a sense of awe, amazement, wonder, positivity, and hope when they look at the portraits. I want people to feel something beyond their own thought process, beyond their physical body, as though they’re taken somewhere in their mind where they stop thinking. For me, when I look at water, crystals, or something with movement, I stop thinking and feel peace, tranquility, and positivity. Ultimately, I want people to walk away thinking, “Wow, what have I been looking at for the past half hour?” and feel like something has opened in their mind and heart.
What is the artistic process like for collaborating on pieces of this scale? Do you feel that you have similar processes?
Gerry and I have quite different artistic processes. He’ll start the painting and work entirely on his own, without any feedback from me. Then the painting will come to my studio in West London, and I’ll start placing the crystals, blending them, and seeing how they work with the painting. That process takes time—days or weeks—to find the right crystals, shading, colours, and sizes that suit each specific painting. I work in solitude, too, and there’s overlap in the amount of concentration and focus that goes into the details. Gerry is capturing something very formative, while I’m capturing something a bit more subjective. There’s a lot of pinpoint precision and hand-setting in my process. So, I’d say our work is similar, yet different.
Your collection features icons of the past century; would you ever create a portrait of an older figure in history? Or is photography too integral of an inspiration?
I would absolutely love to create pieces from different centuries. The first female pirate is someone I’d love to capture and paint, bringing her into contemporary portraiture. Leonardo da Vinci is another—he brought an incredible amount of innovation and light and changed the course of so many things we have today. He’s someone we’d enjoy reimagining and recreating. And of course, Mozart. The sky is the limit with this—there are no bounds.
To see more of Sequin and Gerry’s work go to:
