Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2020 i Tatler Malaysia

TATLER HONG KONG Entrepreneur Danny Yeung stars on the cover of this month’s issue. Yeung is the co-founder and CEO of Prenetics, which manufactures DNA testing kits and this year also pivoted to making Covid-19 tests, thousands of which Yeung has donated for free throughout the pandemic. tatlerhongkong.com TATLER INDONESIA Actor and film producer Nicholas Saputra discusses his career on camera and his activism off-screen: Saputra is an avid environmentalist who backs awareness-raising films with his production company, Tanakhir Films. tatlerindonesia.com TATLER MALAYSIA Asra Jehan uses her accessories brand, Royal Sembilan, to give artisans a platform to showcase their work. She is particularly dedicated to supporting the dying art of tenun, a traditional weaving technique historically found throughout Southeast Asia. tatlermalaysia.com TATLER PHILIPPINES On the cover of Tatler Philippines is…

ANDREA KEE This globe-trotting fashion stylist-cum-writer has attended fashion weeks around the world. Andrea Kee’s works have received international acclaim, even conducting styling sessions and workshops for luxury brands, which include Versace, Bulgari as well as Salvatore Ferragamo. In this month’s issue, she styled Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew for the cover feature (p.156) JON TONKS Jon Tonks is a British photographer whose work explores how people’s lives are shaped by history and geography. His photos have appeared in The New York Times, The Guardian, National Geographic Traveller and more. For Tatler, Tonks photographed gallerist Ben Brown and his mother, artist and art patron Rosamond Brown (p.200) KIM MUN Skilled in fashion shoots and conceptual portraits, this shutterbug from Hopscotch Photography found his calling in capturing moments when he received…

The eldest daughter of Tunku Puteri Tunku Puan Sri Dato’ Seri Jawahir and Tengku Tan Sri Azlan Sultan Abu Bakar, Tengku Asra Jehan’s penchant for creativity began from a young age. Her younger days were filled with fond memories of rearranging furniture at home and redecorating items after being inspired by something she had seen in a glossy magazine. The world of fashion soon caught her eye too, with a little help from her mum. “Growing up, my mother was a big fan of the celebrated fashion gurus of the ’80s including Emanuel Ungaro, Thierry Mugler and Gianfranco Ferré,” says Tengku Asra. “She would also bring me along to all the high tea fashion shows held in hotels around Kuala Lumpur at the time, and I never complained!” Years passed,…

PICTURE THIS Ever the champion of merging art with fashion, Loewe creative director Jonathan Anderson takes inspiration from American artist Ken Price for a Christmas capsule for the festive season. Price, who was most active in the Sixties, painted on ceramic sculptures. His images of palm trees and the Los Angeles cityscape can now be found on Loewe’s Hammock and Puzzle bags, recreated using intricate leather marquetry, as well as on easy shirts and denim looks. WANDERLUST For its first patterned suitcase, Rimowa has launched a camouflage style with a metallic sheen made possible by innovative aluminium anodising techniques and painstakingly finished by hand. The special edition comes in two colourways—green and pink—and in a compact cabin size for when your travel bubble dreams come true, hopefully in time for…

When were you first introduced to jewellery? I was about six or seven years old and had strung together a bracelet made of plastic pearls and gold beads. I didn’t know what a clasp was, so tied it onto my mother’s wrist. She took it to the jewellers and had it replicated with small Akoya pearls and gold beads with a proper clasp. Tell us about your new capsule collection. Nature has always been a powerful source of inspiration for my jewellery. I’ve designed ten pieces that are set with stunning diamonds. Each gemstone is so precious, I decided to design unique settings for each piece to ensure I did the stones justice. Do you have a favourite piece? It would have to be the rose-cut Cocoon ring, which features…

The year was 1988. I attended a dinner party in North London and it was here that I met my future wife, Adriana. When I decided to propose, there was no doubt in my mind that I wanted to present her with an exceptional emerald. Adriana is Colombian and, for hundreds of years, her homeland has yielded many of the world’s finest emeralds. In fact, it is estimated that the country accounts for a staggering 50 to 60 per cent of the world’s emerald market. I first visited Colombia a year after we met. I was immediately struck by its undeniable beauty. It has a dramatic Caribbean coastline, colonial communities and snow-capped peaks that offer some of the most breathtaking views I’ve ever seen. The Colombian people are wonderfully warm…

One of Austen Chu’s greatest regrets is selling his Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Openworked Perpetual Calendar. For years, the platinum edition was his dream watch. He even had a photo of it as his laptop and phone backgrounds for a while. And by a while, I mean for four whole years. But with an original asking price of about US$150,000, it was a lot of money to spend for the then 19-year-old. So, Chu tracked down a steel version, which was much more affordable—to him, at least—at about US$45,000. He flew to Switzerland to collect his new purchase and stayed with a friend at an acquaintance’s house in Geneva. “We decided to celebrate and have dinner afterwards. We got so drunk, like absolutely plastered. By the time we left the…

John-Son Oei’s non-profit initiative Epic Homes has been building houses for the Orang Asli for nearly a decade. Marginalised communities have been largely neglected in terms of infrastructure, healthcare and education, with thousands of families living in unsafe housing conditions. Oei states that building homes only solves one piece of the puzzle. So other than putting a roof over their heads, EPIC is helping the Orang Asli attain higher-value jobs that they typically wouldn’t have access to. In partnership with other experts and NGOs, they’re also looking at self-sustainability mainly in terms of food security to help the indigenous save money and at the same time guarantee the nutrients they need on a daily basis. During the pandemic, their online platform Sedunia hosted vital activities like fundraising and volunteerism, raising…

Imprisoned, ridiculed and assaulted at the age of 21, Nisha Ayub’s harrowing journey that culminated in her becoming the transgender rights activist she is today isn’t just inspiring, but a sharp reminder that despite 19 years after her experience, Nisha’s past was still another trans woman’s present. One of her greatest motivators is the community itself; having co-founded Seed in 2007 which sought to aid marginalised transgender persons and Justice for Sisters in 2010 as a response to the violent, arbitrary arrests that took place in Seremban against transgender women. To date, they’ve managed to fundraise to provide emergency aid with the support of other organisations. They recently finished renovating their drop-in centre with the assistance of the German Embassy, which Nisha hopes can become a place where not only…

Environmental protection has been Wang Canfa’s focus for decades, particularly how to translate China’s ambitious efforts to contain pollution into action. As the director of the Centre for Legal Assistance to Pollution Victims, he has brought legal cases against businesses that might have previously treated laws and regulations as suggestions, and helped those whose lives have been affected along the way. Wang is also a professor at the China University of Political Science and Law and is widely recognised by environmental activists and government leaders as an expert on the impact of China’s rapid economic growth on its climate and culture. He has helped draft provisions designed to give more clarity to enforcement and penalties for violating China’s “ecological redlines” regulations that are intended to fortify the nation’s goal of…

Myla Villanueva is the founder of five start-up companies and a pioneering woman in technology. But she’s best known for her work in securing the integrity of the Philippines’ voting process as national chairperson of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting. Villanueva’s efforts to conduct non-partisan voter education and to reform poll watching across the country have developed over the last decade since the introduction of automated elections. “There needed to be a new poll watchers’ education protocol and, conversely, a primer on how to vote and shade those circles on a ballot,” she said in 2019. Villanueva mobilises an enormous number of volunteers for this initiative to ensure clean elections and has been widely praised for her management skills, which have echoes in both her technology business and…

In 2017, Myanmar Now journalist Ko Swe Win criticised a powerful Buddhist monk for inciting hate and endorsing assassination when he publicly praised the killer of a Muslim human rights activist. This was one example of his brave journalism the board of the Ramon Magsaysay Award Foundation cited in naming him a 2019 recipient of the prestigious honour for emergent leadership. Having grown up in a poor family in the political turmoil of Yangon, even getting arrested in 1998 for protesting in a student demonstration, Swe Win has focused his coverage on social justice issues. His criticism of the monk, Ashin Wirathu, caused him to be sued and briefly jailed, with a trial that was viewed by critics as a form of harassment for requiring the editor to travel 1,255…

RONNIE CHAN Hang Lung Group tycoon Ronnie Chan hit headlines around the world in 2014 when he gave US$350 million through his family’s Morningside Foundation to Harvard University, which at the time was the largest donation ever received by the institution. But that wasn’t even Chan’s total giving for the year: he also donated US$20 million to the University of Southern California. And Chan gives time as well as money: he is chairman of the nonprofit educational institution the Asia Society Hong Kong Center and chairman emeritus of the Asia Society’s global board, as well as chairman of the Centre for Asian Philanthropy and Society, which aims to improve the quality and quantity of philanthropy in Asia. LI KA-SHING Billionaire Li Ka-shing was given the nickname Superman because of his…

How does one write about Paris … a city that eludes capture at every turn? This was the insurmountable task before Alexandra Senes who provides the text for Paris Chic, a book published by Assouline. Together with photographer Oliver Pilcher, she offers readers a glimpse into the fabled city through stories from Parisians themselves—a term Senes herself finds amusing. “[It’s] absurd really … [for] Parisians are rarely from Paris,” she says. “Paris has inspired the entire world,” Senes writes. Filmmakers, photographers and writers have proven the city to be truly inexhaustible. Thus, their approach has become much simpler than intended. The duo explored less-travelled paths and sought to capture the quiet daily moments of Parisian life. “The approach was a generous and smiling town opposite of a cranky and rude…

“I think we were a bit predestined to end up working together,” the interior designer Gert Voorjans laughs, while talking about how his decades-long partnership with fashion designer Dries Van Noten began. The creative duo met in Antwerp, where they both live, in the Nineties, a few years after the breakthrough of a group of designers, including Van Noten, who emerged from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts and became known in fashion circles as the Antwerp Six. Their distinctive vision for fashion, which flourished in the mid-Eighties, established Belgium’s largest city as a notable destination for fashion design. “I feel like a certain punch, sexiness and twist need to be present in my interiors” —GERT VOORJANS Dries Van Noten’s Paris flagship evokes the eccentricity of the legendary antiques dealer…

Philipponnat Clos des Goisses 2002 Inexplicably one of the most undervalued prestige cuvées in an era that fetishises single sites, the Clos des Goisses has a winning blend of generosity and poise that makes it a true wine lover’s champagne. The vintage’s blazing acidity will keep this baby singing for decades to come. Charles Heidsieck Blanc des Millénaires 2004 Long held back by its hokey “Champagne Charlie” moniker, Charles Heidsieck has undergone a major restoration of credibility thanks in large part to the Blanc des Millénaires. They are only released ten years after the vintage and epitomise the house’s rich, smoky, sexy style. Azelia Barolo Bricco Voghera Riserva 2014 The Scavinos of Azelia have long lived in the shadow of their cousins at Paolo Scavino, with whom they share the…

Quinn’s unique proposition is one of affordable luxury as MCL Land believes that value and gracious lifestyle should not be mutually exclusive. This is reflected abundantly in Quinn’s 361 units which feature high ceilings and come partially fitted with branded and premium fittings. With only 9 units per floor, built up sizes vary from cozy one bedroom units of 538 sq ft to larger 4 bedroom units of 1,070 sq ft. To help buyers visualise the Quinn lifestyle, Hong Kong based interior design firm PTang Studio was enlisted. The award winning practice is one of Hong Kong’s leading architectural and interior design companies and responsible for a diverse scope of projects across Asia ranging from private residences to corporate headquarters. Conscious of MCL Land’s aspirations for Quinn to set the…

Fans of Instagrammable spaces will be familiar with the work of Wunderwall Design who’ve built some of the Klang Valley’s most post-worthy settings. From the spectacularly lush Victorian greenhouse inspired Jibby on the Park to the meticulously crafted Lit Books, the young team comprising of Sharmaine Wong, Chia Wei Hoong and Wil Ken are masters at creating compelling narratives by layering design details. Fittingly the owner of this home in the upmarket Mansions gated community in Desa Park City came across their work on social media and after contacting them on the same platform, they met up and appointment came swiftly after. With a built up of approximately 6,850 square feet, the multi-level house was larger than anything the designers had done but the designers were raring to take on…

“Designing is a joy, but also a commitment,” said Maria Cristina Mariani Dameno, better known to the world as the esteemed Italian architect and industrial designer, Cini Boeri. It’s a belief she had celebrated throughout her career, connecting human psychology to the functional requirements of furniture design; the 96-year-old recently passed away in Milan, Italy, where she had lived all her life. Boeri’s work stood out for her intuitive approach—she frequently created modular, ergonomic designs that could adapt to the user’s lifestyle. The iconic Strips sofa designed in 1968 for Arflex is one such example; it features a removable quilted cover with modular parts in Tetris-like configurations. Her deliberately minimal material palette also resulted in innovative collections including the Ghost chair for Fiam Italia, which is crafted from a 12mm-thick…

What makes TikTok unique and different from other social media platforms? Millennials and Gen Zs like S-I-N-C (Short-form, Influencer Driven, Native and Co-Created content), and as the world embraces the mobile era, TikTok has become the preferred platform for expression, especially among this generation. From a community perspective, TikTok is a platform that allows users to express their creative ideas through their content, giving rise to extremely interactive challenges and trending topics that anyone can participate in. Of course, TikTok encourages creation through the easy-to-use video capturing and editing tools, resulting in a pool of very diversified content, and providing a direct way for creators and fans to connect. What do you think is special about the TikTok scene in Malaysia? Since its launch in 2017 in Malaysia, TikTok has…

AMAZIN’ GRAZE The wait was worth it! Amazin’ Graze’s Christmas lineup includes all-new products such as White Chocolate Cranberry Granola and Cherry Peppermint Brownie Chips. Healthy yet decadent, the nut butters are packaged into a variety box with designs by artist MayLii Koo, which makes them perfect for gifting (or squirrelling away at home). Who wouldn’t want to find them beneath the Christmas tree? Order online at amazingraze.com or seek out the products at select supermarkets W KUALA LUMPUR From classic roast turkey with apricot and sage stuffing to spiked pudding, the hotel’s festive offerings will make the holiday feel complete. All-day dining restaurant Flock is serving Christmas set menus throughout December while also hosting its annual ‘Retox at Dusk’ spreads on Christmas Eve as well as Boxing Day. Expect a…

The first Malaysian to pitch her idea on the American business reality television series Shark Tank in 2019, Amber Leong successfully acquired a US$750,000 investment for a 20 per cent stake in her company, Circadian Optics. She shares about her light-bulb moment and the early days of her start-up. I was feeling sluggish and couldn’t concentrate especially when days are so short during winter. I was working long hours at a corporate job and not exercising. I never saw the sun! I found an article about seasonable depression and the benefits of light-therapy lamps and purchased the best-selling one, a big fluorescent lamp that took up a lot of my desk space. My colleagues laughed at me, but I quickly felt the benefits: I was more awake, I had more…

How did you first realise you wanted to work in fashion? I’ve always pursued beauty. For a few years I was a fashion blogger and at some point I started to make my own clothes and everyone began asking me where I got them from. The rest, as they say, is history. What were some of your first concerns when you started the brand? I’d worried about how to introduce the brand to Europe and the US, but then we were picked up by Net-a-Porter during our first season on the market, giving us a global audience. We are also doing our best to be more sustainable with each season. In the very beginning we only produced a limited quantity to reduce our carbon footprint and avoid overproduction, but now…

READY, SET… 1 LA PRAIRIE The five-piece Platinum Rare Haute Rejuvenation Ritual is designed to smooth, lift, firm and brighten skin. Each product is infused with platinum for collagen production, and La Prairie’s Exclusive Cellular Complex. 2 DRUNK ELEPHANT Cult beauty label Drunk Elephant teamed up with luggage brand Monos to fill a carry-on trunk with ten bestsellers including the TLC Sukari Babyfacial and B-Hydra Intensive Hydration Serum. 3 CROWN AFFAIR The Set by New York haircare brand Crown Affair includes a comb—hand-carved in Switzerland, obviously—and a brush handmade in Italy. It also includes a hair oil, towel, scrunchie and three-minute version of an hourglass, as a reminder to take your sweet time while staring at your hair. 4 TATCHA Based on the beauty rituals of Japanese geisha, Tatcha’s designed…

Tell us about your latest line. I wanted to modernise the Middle Eastern evil eye, which typically comes in turquoise, so I decided to design it with pink and blue sapphires, as well as emeralds, surrounded by my signature baguette-cut diamonds, which act as eyelashes. What’s been your biggest achievement to date? When I was asked by Harrods to have my own standalone boutique, which opened in October. Who would you love to see wearing your pieces? A mother, daughter and grandmother. What’s your favourite gemstone? Diamonds. If you weren’t a jeweller, what would you be? A chef. I love cooking and eating fusion food. What music do you listen to? Charles Aznavour and Leonard Cohen, to calm my soul. How have you been spending this year? I’ve been locked…

KEEP ON GOING For its latest limited-edition series of exceptional watches, Audemars Piguet has partnered with Anita Porchet, who specialises in paillonné enamel dials, which involve tucking pieces of foil between layers of enamel. Porchet has designed faces for three of the five watches in the series. The remaining two are reserved for custom orders and are likely to sell for several hundred thousand US dollars. Powering the Grande Sonnerie Carillon Supersonnerie is the hand-wound Calibre 2956, a new movement that makes complex mechanisms look like child’s play. This calibre not only strikes the hour, quarters and minutes on request (which a traditional minute repeater would do), it also strikes the hour and quarter by default, without any involvement from the wearer. Plus, the carillon instrument means that these watches…

Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew is of a firm mind that prevention is the best way to slow down the spread of the Covid-19 virus. From the outset of the pandemic in Malaysia, he had already begun to take steps to alleviate the ensuing shortage of protective equipment that he foresees is coming. He first got in touch with Health director-general Tan Sri Dr Noor Hisham to ask him what help he needed. The former was told that ventilators were direly needed for the hospitals. The fast-acting Lee went ahead and sourced for 20 high-spec ventilators from China. “At first they quoted me RM38,000 for the ventilators, to which I said okay, let’s book it,” says Lee. “Then all of a sudden, they raised the price to RM58,000, but I…

An oncology pharmacist-turned-social activist, Syed Azmi has spearheaded countless community work projects helping the homeless and urban poor, the elderly, HIV-positive sex workers, the disabled and underprivileged children. He’s known for being vocal about child sexual abuse issues to raise awareness. Through PUAK Payong (PUAK stands for Persatuan Untuk Anak Kita), Syed Azmi focuses on creating a haven for children to ensure they are safe and protected. He also runs transit homes for unwed pregnant teenage girls and houses children from Henry Gurney School, a rehabilitation centre for juvenile offenders. Despite what the community might think of them as being ‘damaged goods’, Syed Azmi believes that every child is worth saving and it’s important they have a good support system, regardless of their background. He says, “I don’t like stereotyping…

One of the many NGOs on the frontline was none other than Pertiwi Soup Kitchen, whose founder, Datuk Munirah Abdul Hamid, has had a firsthand account on the pandemic’s impact on the homeless community she’s helped for over 64 years. “When CMCO came, community centres opened and the homeless were slowly released after being rescued by government aid, and while some of them got jobs as well as accommodation after the programmes, most returned home,” Munirah states. “The ones who are out there now are mostly old folks who’d rather be outside than stay in a retirement home. So I suggested to other organisations that we have a safe house, especially in the Chow Kit area where families are living in cubicles that have neither ventilation nor windows.” As a…

The tragic events of 2020 have been a sore validation for Christina Dean, whose mission in founding Redress in 2007 was to promote sustainability without hindering business. “I believe that industry must take place, but we have a responsibility to ensure we do not hurt public health,” she says. “Fashion has a tremendous role to play—it’s beautiful, it’s functional and it’s our second skin. But I think it’s wrong that our clothing causes so much suffering, ill-health and pain to millions of people around the world.” Dean was a journalist and a dentist before her passion for adventure led her to move to Hong Kong in 2005. Her research on apparel manufacturing led her to realise the need for more environmental education for aspiring designers. To that end, with Redress,…

Everyone hates plastic bags. But sisters Isabel and Melati Wijsen decided to do something about them in 2013, when they were just 10 and 12 years old, respectively. All it took was a history lesson on the significance of impactful leaders to inspire the sisters in their Bali schoolroom to ask, “What can we do?” The Wijsens created Bye Bye Plastic Bags, a campaign that has drawn enormous attention, thanks in part to the founders’ young ages. Among its projects, the NGO has launched an educational booklet about the harms of plastics to the environment, collected rubbish from rivers and formed partnerships with collectives that produce alternatives to plastic bags. Bye Bye Plastic Bags has also inspired young people around the world to form their own teams promoting its mission,…

As Bill Gates once said, “I’ve never met anyone who knows how to have as much fun with condoms (in public, anyway) as Mechai Viravaidya.” Viravaidya is known throughout Thailand and beyond as “Mr Condom”, having organised the nation’s successful HIV and Aids prevention programme, in addition to his numerous ventures in non-governmental organisations dedicated to eradicating poverty and improving access to education for rural schoolchildren. In 1974, in response to challenges brought on by a rapidly growing population, he established the PDA to initiate family planning services that contributed to a dramatic reduction of population growth, from more than 3.3 per cent in 1974, with an average of seven children per family, to 0.6 per cent in 2005. His ability to gain acceptance for contraceptives comes from his sense…

CAMBODIA Suwanna Gauntlett Gauntlett, founder and CEO of the Wildlife Alliance, fights for the protection of the rainforest and wildlife. Melita Hunter Hunter, co-founder of the Song Saa Foundation, protects the habitat and marine life of the Koh Rong Archipelago. CHINA Chang Sun Chang, founder of Black Soil Group, promotes a modern agriculture business with improved productivity by consolidating land and scaling up operations. Charles Chen Yidan Chen, one of the co-founders of Tencent, whose Yidan Prize Foundation established the world’s largest education prize, provides educational innovators and pioneers with recognition and support. Guo Jianmei Guo, a lawyer, author and human rights activist, provides thousands of disadvantaged women in China with free legal aid and counselling. She was also awarded the Right Livelihood Award in 2019 for her pioneering work…

TRAVEL TIPS “Fifteen years now that I’ve been writing about what to see and do in Paris in guidebooks … When you’re on rue des Filles du Calvaire, and you have two of the same boutiques or two of the same restaurants, which do you choose? The one that’s run with passion …” —Kate van den Boogert, author OVERHEARD From a conversation over lunch at the brasserie Closerie des Lilas “In Paris, you don’t say, ‘OK’, you say, ‘All right’.” “My boss is English; I never know what he’s thinking, whereas the French have no filter.” “Real Parisians aren’t vegan; they scarf down meat and drink cheap wine… fuck the salad!” ON FRENCH CUISINE “For me, sauce is the verb of French cuisine that speaks of the future, the present…

BERBER LODGE MARRAKESH, MOROCCO There is something to be said for staying in the heart of the medina in Marrakesh—I love Jasper Conran’s L’Hotel—but there is also something special about the languid experience of staying in a shady oasis on the city’s outskirts. The latter is particularly perfect at Swiss designer and architect Romain Michel Meniere’s Berber Lodge. With some help from his long-time friends at the white-hot Studio KO, he has created a destination for chic habitués of the city—a stay there makes you feel as though you are part of the city’s chic expat set. berberlodge.net PLAYA GRANDE BEACH CLUB, DOMINICAN REPUBLIC The owners of this Caribbean confection on one of the Dominican Republic’s most dramatically beautiful beaches definitely had fun in the design process. Less a hotel…

IDENTIFY YOUR GOALS For most wine enthusiasts, becoming a collector wasn’t something they set out to do; it just sort of happened. Looking back, I wish that ten years ago, when I started to think about collecting, I had someone to take me under their wing and help me think strategically. To be fair, there was no dearth of willing wings, but I was loath to let on that I didn’t really know what I was doing. The truth is that most of us are just winging it, seduced by the latest sale or trendy region and rarely doing much in the way of long-term thinking. Of course, there are people whose approach is purely rational and profit-driven, but I have very little wisdom to impart to them. Instead I’ve…

2020 has been an extraordinary year. A year that has forced many of the things we take for granted into sharp focus - the redefinition of our home is one of them. From being just a place to unwind and sleep, the home has become where we work, cook, eat, learn and much more. But beyond the purely functional, it has become our sanctuary, somewhere to shelter with our nearest and dearest. No surprise then that over a chat with an architect friend recently, he revealed that while his F&B projects were at a standstill, the demand for home renovations and upgrading was at an all-time high. Seems like we’ve all cottoned on to how important our homes are and that there’s no better time to feather our nests. To…

Does the quality of our environment influence our wellbeing? Renowned Swiss philosopher, Alain de Botton, in his book, The Architecture of Happiness, argues that being in an environment that’s pleasing affects us more than we think. For many of us, our homes are where we spend most of our time so not only are our most personal spaces crucial, its envelope, the building in which we live in, is just as important. MCL Land has been building top notch residential buildings in Singapore over the last 50 years. Not only do these condominiums fulfil that cardinal rule of real estate, location, the buildings themselves are of architectural note. This legacy continues with Quinn, MCL Land’s first offering in Malaysia, where the developer chose to work with award winning Singaporean architecture…

1 100,000 STEPS TO END AIDS Join this virtual walk to help raise funds for those living with HIV in the wake of Covid. Organised by the Malaysian AIDS Foundation together with other partners. getbiib.com/events/79 3 YUNA LIVE FROM AQUARIA, KLCC Catch Yuna’s livestream performance amidst the calming backdrop of Aquaria KLCC at 8pm. Tickets and merchandise are on sale at momenthouse.com/yuna 4 SHAWN MENDES’ ALBUM RELEASE The Canadian singer’s fourth album Wonder drops today. Fans should watch the feature-length documentary directed by Grant Singer on Netflix, chronicling the past few years of Mendes’ life including his rise to fame. 11 THE PROM Based on the Broadway musical, this movie adaptation stars powerhouses such as Meryl Streep, Nicole Kidman, James Corden, Ariana Grande, Kerry Washington and Keegan-Michael Key, who are…

In kindergarten, Tomo Koizumi would bring a backpack filled with origami paper to class, determined to become a teacher of the ancient art of Japanese paper folding. But he soon realised that it wasn’t so much the paper he loved as simply the act of collecting a full spectrum of colours. Nearly three decades later, Koizumi, 32, still loves hoarding hues, but now uses polyester fabrics that come in 170 colours to build majestic, sartorial sculptures that look like bouquets of blooming hydrangeas for stage performers around the world. Lady Gaga, Japanese girl group Perfume and Hong Kong pop star Miriam Yeung are just a few who have flaunted his frothy creations on stage. “In Japan, there aren’t really occasions to wear big dresses, so I became a costume designer…

Francesca Amfitheatrof’s second high jewellery collection tells us to reach for the stars in an amalgamation of exceptional craftsmanship and creativity. Aptly called Stellar Times, Louis Vuitton journeys to the far reaches of the galaxy to capture the mystical beauty of the cosmos through seven celestial themes showcasing rare, precious stones that embody planets and beyond. This is evident in the Planète Bleue bracelet and ring which boast a Zambian emerald. Monogram flower-cut diamonds swirl around it, symbolising the earth’s relationship to the galaxy. Astre Rouge honours Mars with a decadent pairing of Mozambique rubies. Glistening diamonds fan out to draw focus to the central ruby stone. As a tribute to the universe’s kaleidoscopic beauty, Interstellaire exudes colour and and light with the multicoloured spinels set in the bib necklace.…

What should we know about Geneva Watch Days 2020, which happened in August? We’re really excited about this new concept, which is a departure from traditional watch fairs like Baselworld and Watches & Wonders. It’s a digital fair, meaning 50 per cent of activity is conducted via Zoom and other online platforms. It was also open to the public, unlike previous watch fairs. What makes Geneva Watch Days special? The fact that this fair is open to the public means any collector visiting Switzerland could see our novelties at the same time as retailers and professional watch experts. Tell us about the Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Chronograph Skeleton. This is Bulgari’s sixth world record in six years and it demonstrates the very best of complex watchmaking. It’s the flattest tourbillon chronograph…

A three-time Forbes Asia Hero of Philanthropy, Tan Sri Dr Jeffrey Cheah cuts an inspiring figure whose passion for education, healthcare and sustainable development runs deep. He’s responsible for founding a self-sufficient flagship township, Sunway City Kuala Lumpur, which serves 200,000 people living, working and studying in a well-planned interconnected environment. With the recent integration of 5G technology, it is well on its way to becoming a global smart sustainable city which he hopes will serve as the region’s model for future urban spaces. “We are living in a new era,” he reasons. “We cannot thrive in a digital age using an analogue mindset.” His forward-thinking views stem from his formative years growing up in a small town called Pusing in Perak, where he witnessed the impact of poverty on…

Samsul Said’s main drive in photographing refugees and the marginalised is to raise awareness on their living experiences. In the age of social media, new and informative visuals play a tremendous role in delivering messages via trustworthy sources. “As a photojournalist, I’m only capable of delivering real-time visuals based on what I see and hear. It’s up to the public to make informed decisions about what they read, and whether or not they interpret them in a positive light,” stated Samsul, adding that everyone should open their hearts to a better tomorrow. Having won the top prize in the 2018 Sony World Photography Awards (Professional Current Affairs & News category), he has recently completed photography projects with Uniqlo Malaysia and AFLO photo agency Japan. Humanitarian projects like the humanitarian aid…

At first, it was an effort to enable their students to maintain their education in a refugee learning centre they volunteered at as tutors in 2013. Kim Lim, Suzanne Ling and Lee Swee Lin cooked up a plan to have the refugees sell home-cooked meals to their fellow university mates, which allowed these families to earn their own income while enabling their children to continue their studies. The very first chef they approached with this idea was one of their students’ mothers, a Burmese woman whose son, Picha, would ultimately become the namesake of one of Forbes’ 30 Under 30 companies. Seven years later, they’ve now partnered with 20 chefs from Syria, Myanmar, Afghanistan, Palestine, Iraq and Pakistan, and have served over 135k meals prepared by the refugees themselves. Despite…

Dipa Swaminathan already faced a challenging mission before this year’s upending by Covid-19. Swaminathan, an assistant general counsel for SingTel, created It’s Raining Raincoats in 2015 to raise support and compassion for the enormous population of migrant workers in Singapore. She started the initiative after witnessing incidents of inhumane conditions, such as men wearing rubbish bags to protect themselves from the rain, and seeing results when she raised her voice to complain. “A little compassion towards them goes a long way,” Swaminathan said in a 2018 Ted Talk. “We find bridges to build between our community and theirs.” She has arranged athletic meets with local schoolchildren, secured donations of clothing, and distributed water bottles collected from schools and unsold pastries from a network of Starbucks stores. She was given a…

As the inventor of the technology used in N95 respirator masks, Peter Tsai found himself back in the news this year, and quickly out of a short-lived retirement. Tsai was a professor in the University of Tennessee when he patented the filtration material used in the masks 25 years ago. His research greatly improved the ability to produce more efficient masks using nonwoven fabrics, melt-blowing and electrostatic charging technology, but his name was barely known outside his native Taiwan before the pandemic. As need for the masks, which were designed to be disposable, became critical this year, Tsai went back to work in a makeshift laboratory developing ideas (boiling, steaming, baking, you name it) to clean and decontaminate them for multiple wears without compromising their charge. He published an emergency…

American actress and singer Ashley Park has been a star on Broadway for years, appearing in productions such as Mamma Mia!, The King and I and Mean Girls, the latter of which earned her a Tony award nomination for best supporting actress in 2018. This year she has made her mark on the screen, appearing as Lily Collins’ quick witted and fearless best friend, Mindy, a nanny with a hidden singing talent, in Netflix’s hit Emily in Paris. What was the audition process like for your character Mindy? In June 2019, I received an email from my agent to audition in New York. A few weeks later, I was rehearsing for a play in Massachusetts and my agent called to tell me that [series creator] Darren Star wanted to call…

When Rosamond Brown moved to Hong Kong in 1964, she didn’t set out to become one the city’s most prominent art patrons. She slipped into the role as if it simply were the thing to do. That she was only 26, and a painter herself, was no matter. “My husband Charles and I used to go to shows, which were mostly held in the New Territories, and purchase works we found interesting,” she recalls, speaking on the phone from London, where she currently spends part of her time. “We felt we ought to do our part in helping artists, all the more because I myself was one. But there was no grand plan behind it. We bought the pieces and hung them on the walls of our house.” “Hong Kong…

Jacques Selosse Initial Blanc de Blancs NV I remember the days when this creamy, hazelnut-suffused NV from superstar grower Jacques Selosse was no more than a slight self-indulgence and a hip alternative to your nicer big-house NV Brut. Having experienced a 110 per cent price increase since autumn 2010, it’s now more of an occasional treat. Armand Rousseau Clos St Jacques Premier Cru 1993 This wine used to feel like the insider’s grand cru (Clos St Jacques is a premier cru but many argue it deserves grand cru status). These days it’s priced like one, having risen 430 per cent in value since 2010. However, 1993 was a deeply underrated vintage and remains lower in price than other strong vintages from the Nineties. The wine itself remains a lyrical, perfumed…

There’s a lyric which goes, you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone – the same could apply to convenience or peace of mind where you don’t realise that it’s missing until it’s not there. Being seasoned developers, MCL Land have equipped Quinn with the full range of facilities one would expect from a premium development and extra features with user-friendliness in mind. The mood is set on the pleasantly appointed ground floor which allows residents to entertain guests without having to go upstairs to their unit with strategically landscaped water features and a lobby lounge. A children’s playground and childcare center are provided to keep the young ones occupied. On the third level, entertaining is taken up a notch whether it’s al-fresco at the impressive infinity pool, gourmet…