Born to a French-Filipino father and a Spanish-Chinese mother, Victoria literally has the best of both worlds to influence her jewelry design - a Western sophistication and broadness of view tempered by an Asian serenity and impeccable sense of harmony and balance.
Raised in Cebu, Victoria as a child already loved creating, making her own jewelry and writing stories, most of which were about traveling to mysterious and exciting lands and having wonderful adventures. This led to her passion for travel and studying other cultures, which she thought would be fulfilled when she embarked on a career in modeling. After several successful years in the industry, Victoria realized that her urge to create was not being fulfilled as a model, and studying the world of fashion, she found many challenges behind the scenes.
However, this was precisely when internationally-renown recording artist Elkin Marin arrived on the scene and proceeded to sweep her off her feet. She had always loved music and for the next 16 years it became her life, as back in the limelight she couldn't seem to avoid, she collaborated with Elkin on Spanish and English songs and several albums that they would perform together in a nonstop series of gigs and concerts that took them all around the world.
Victoria's personal style flourished and became influenced by the culture, history and natural beauty of the countries she lived in and had become a part of. In India, in particular, Victoria became fascinated with the amazing blend of spirituality and lavish decadence of the country. The remarkable textures, colours and styles and the skillful workmanship made the place a treasure trove for any imaginative designer. She was always impressed by how even the poorest women in India, no matter how shabbily dressed, took pride in their appearance and never failed to adorn themselves carefully and beautifully. It reminded her how a person can make themselves feel better by looking good and how just a simple, well-chosen piece can make an outfit. This is when she decided that the time was right for her to finally go back to her dream of designing, with silver jewelry as her primary focus.
By this time, Elkin was just as enthusiastic about the whole concept and here in Mumbai, their first collection was born.
Returning to Barcelona where they were based at the time, they decided to put their first designs to the test and were encouraged by how favorably they were received in several trendy boutiques around Spain.
By then Victoria had lived over a decade away from home and found herself missing the more laid-back life and exotic allure of Asia. She was beginning to feel like they had lived in Europe far too long and the thought of going back made sense. Now, although the materials they use for their jewelry are sourced from all over the world, the assembly is done in their factory on the island of Cebu.
What she wants most of all to convey in her work is the blending of the past and present, as well as what she herself is, a fitting fusion of East and West. Her love of architecture and archeology influenced many of her pieces, such as the Torii gates in their Shogun collection, an example of historical monuments with a modern twist.
Though she still travels regularly, studying yogic teachings in India or exploring the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul, she's perfectly content to be home, sitting in their studio and doing what she loves best: creating designs ands seeing them come vividly to life. Currently Victoria is designing her own line of handbags and home accessories and is working on a new album with Elkin.
To know more about Victoria's collection, you may check out www.victoria marin.com.