Innholdsfortegnelse for June 2020 i Tatler Singapore

TATLER HONG KONG Josie Ho—the actress, singer and founder of music label Drill 162 and film company 852 Films—is a force to be reckoned with. In her latest indie film, Habit, which is due to be released later this year, Ho stars as a wild party girl who becomes involved in criminal activities. tatlerhongkong.com SHANGLIU TATLER Mixed martial artist Zhang Weili, who is on Shangliu Tatler’s cover, has won a total of 21 fights, losing only one throughout her entire MMA career. She has since become the first Chinese UFC World Champion after defeating the former reigning champion, Brazilian fighter Jessica Andrade. tatlershangliu.com TATLER INDONESIA Veronika Linardi, Veronica Colondam, Imelda Harsono and Wulan Tilaar are on the cover of Tatler Indonesia’s June issue. All four women have sprung into action…

MIRA UTTAMCHANDANI A fashion stylist and co-founder of e-commerce site Sneaker Surge Hong Kong, Mira Uttamchandani started her career in New York, where she graduated from Parsons School of Design. This month, she styled the jewellery shoot (p.118) TAK SUGITA As a child, Tak Sugita’s first love was drawing, which over the years developed into a passion for all art and, eventually, to a career in photography shooting fashion and portraits for magazines and brands including Levi’s, Shiseido and Shu Uemura. This month, Sugita photographed the fashion shoot Into the Wild (p.68) YASHIRO KUMIKO Yashiro Kumiko is a Tokyo-based fashion stylist. She has worked in London and Tokyo on numerous fashion editorials and commercial campaigns, and styled celebrities all around the world. In this month’s issue, she styled the fashion…

WOMAN’S BEST FRIEND Named after Christian Dior’s beloved dog, Bobby—who previously also inspired a Miss Dior perfume bottle—the new handbag silhouette created by Maria Grazia Chiuri for the French brand features a rounded hobo shape, available in three sizes, adorned with a delicate “CD” buckle and long leather or canvas strap. May it be your new favourite companion once it hits stores this month. BRING THE BLING Beloved by Jacqueline Kennedy, Marlene Dietrich and Catherine Deneuve, Roger Vivier’s classic buckle shoe has become a recognisable symbol of the house since its inception in 1965, inspired by the shoes of marquises that had buckles as jewellery for the feet. In celebration of the shoe’s 55th anniversary this year, current creative director Gherardo Felloni reimagines the iconic style with new polished, square…

ELIZABETH VON DER GOLTZ Global buying director for Net-a-Porter When Elizabeth von der Goltz began her career as an assistant buyer at the now-closed luxury department store Barneys New York, it was “the fashion industry as you’d imagine it in the nineties—egotistical and hostile”, she remembers. “Assistants were asked to do things people would never be asked to do today.” Specifically, one of her managers at the time, though talented at her job, was so disrespectful to those around her that von der Goltz quit the business for two years. “I thought to myself, ‘If that’s the kind of person I’m meant to aspire to become, I don’t want to do this.’” The experience, however, was a turning point for von der Goltz, who vowed to leave a different sort…

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SET FOR LIFE Royal dignitaries and leading ladies have all been papped wearing Harry Winston’s high jewellery over the years. The New Yorker wasn’t dubbed “King of Diamonds” for no reason. His designs seduced the 20th century’s most extraordinary personalities, including Elizabeth Taylor, the Duchess of Windsor and Marilyn Monroe. So, it comes as no surprise that the maison continues to draw on its heritage for present-day collections. We especially love the Cluster earrings in lightweight platinum, which are set with rows of turquoise and sapphires. SILENT SALES With lockdown measures still in place due to Covid-19, Sotheby’s has experienced just how successful online auctions can be. US$6.1M Since the beginning of March, virtual jewellery auctions have totalled US$6.1 million 30% Of those jewellery sales, one third of the bidders…

To mark its 80th anniversary in 2016, jeweller Fred created a talismanic collection called 8°0. The line features a figure of eight on its side, which is commonly known as the infinity symbol—a motif that is now synonymous with the brand. The number eight also represents founder Fred Samuel’s birth date—the jeweller was born in August (the eighth month) in 1908. Well aware of the challenges and general gloom enveloping a world consumed by coronavirus, Fred thought it appropriate women should be able to benefit from some good old-fashioned luck. As such, the Chance Infinie collection has also been conceived as a talisman. What are you waiting for? Choose from earrings, necklaces, bracelets and rings.…

200 metres is the minimum amount of water resistance required for a watch to be considered a scuba diving watch There are 57 complications in the world’s most complicated watch, the Vacheron Constantin Reference 57260, which also houses 2,800 components In the James Bond film Live and Let Die, 007’s Rolex acts as a high-powered magnet to deflect bullets (and unzip dresses) Apple sold more than 30 million smartwatches last year alone A one-of-a-kind Patek Philippe sold for US$31 million in Geneva last November, making it the most expensive wristwatch ever auctioned…

What do you love about watchmaking? There is so much detail and craftsmanship that goes into designing watches. There are so many different inspirations and you have to master so many techniques, once you’ve created a timepiece it really does feel as though you’ve made a small piece of art. That’s especially the case if you’ve made something very small or something that’s a world first. Which Bulgari watch was the most difficult to create? It’s hard to say. Each one is difficult. When we designed the ultra-slim Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Automatic, we had to create the world’s thinnest tourbillon. Designing the Serpenti’s bracelet so that it comfortably coils around the wrist was also challenging. How about for 2020? This year, I suppose the Serpenti Seduttori Tourbillon was the most…

Panerai is marking the 70th anniversary of its glow-in-the-dark watches, which, back in the day, were painted with a radium paste called Radiomir. This practice was discontinued because of Radiomir’s, well… potentially lethal gamma rays. It’s since been replaced with a completely safe alternative, Super-Luminova X1, which has been applied to three super-cool 44mm versions of the new Luminor Marina. The DMLS model comes with a titanium case that’s made using 3D printing with a high power laser.…

Ankiti Bose may be the CEO of one of Southeast Asia’s near-unicorn companies but the 28-year-old still battles a stigma that will probably be all too familiar to many women. “If I go to a meeting with a male colleague, most people will automatically assume he’s the senior one, or that I’m the assistant. It’s not super easy to be a woman on the ground in the commerce or trade business,” says Bose, who launched Zilingo, a technology platform for the fashion industry, with co-founder Dhruv Kapoor in 2015, when she was just 23 years old. Still, she has not let this obstacle stop her from growing the company to its US$970 million valuation today—just $30 million short of the magic US$1 billion figure to be termed a unicorn. Its…

Are we finally getting to a place where it’s safe to be single? If it sounds like an antiquated question in the year 2020, it’s not. Stories about cultural and family pressures on young women to wed remain as common as ever, despite how much progress women have made socially and culturally. It’s particularly interesting in Asia, where conversations about challenging traditional expectations of women are happening in China, Korea, Japan and pretty much everywhere. “A lot more people are thinking marriage is not the solution for their lives,” says Frances Cha, a former travel and culture editor for CNN in Seoul and Hong Kong, whose debut novel, If I Had Your Face, centres on four young women in South Korea who defy such social norms in an environment where…

AMAALA, SAUDI ARABIA This ultra-luxury destination on the northwest coast of Saudi Arabia aims to become the heart of the Red Sea Riviera. Envisioned as a place where art and wellness intersect, this development designed by Denniston International will feature a trio of communities—Triple Bay, The Coastal Development and The Island—in the pristine, 3,800 square-kilometre Prince Mohammed bin Salman Nature Reserve. The former will be a holistic wellness retreat offering top-notch diagnostic medical facilities, while the latter two will be devoted to championing art and culture. When completed in 2030, Amaala will have 800 residential villas, apartments and estate homes, as well as 2,500 hotel rooms and 200 high-end outlets spanning shopping, dining and recreation. amaala.com TRI VANANDA, THAILAND Wellness serves as the compass of this new development in Phuket…

Alamayah, Sumba It’s only a 50-minute flight from Bali, but Sumba feels like a different universe. Home to one of the last flourishing prehistoric tribes on earth, Sumba’s rich culture and raw natural beauty make it a true gem; it also hosts only a handful of responsible hotels committed to preserving this special community. The newest name is Alamayah, a five-star boutique retreat located in the beachside village of Kerewe. Getting here is an adventure in itself—guests take a two-hour drive through mountains, waterfalls and mahogany forests that introduce the island’s untouched scenery. With only six private suites, the intimate hotel is focused on helping guests reconnect with themselves, offering activities such as yoga, sound healing, jungle treks and surfing. The all-inclusive stay also features a healer’s body analysis and…

Almost 10 years ago, when I was a fresh-faced college graduate considering my career options, never did I imagine I would spend so much time talking about my gender. As has happened in so many spheres, the wine world has grappled in recent years with the question of women’s roles, both within the industry and in the broader universe of journalism, education and collecting. As a female participant in many of these ecosystems, with strong connections to other female industry members and leaders, I’ve had both first- and second-hand views. For my own part, I’ve had the somewhat disorienting experience of living through a time when who I am (young, Asian, female) has gone from being a hindrance to an advantage. When I was starting out, I was frequently dismissed…

The coronavirus pandemic has been likened to holding up a mirror—a giant pause that has allowed us to see who we really are. In Japan, staying home has put the spotlight on the immense disparity in domestic work done by men and women, with the latter expected to manage housework and childcare almost wholly alone. A New York Times article published in May recounted how one Japanese couple meticulously documented their household tasks in an excel spreadsheet—the wife’s list reached 210 versus the husband’s mere 21. Naturally, it went viral after being posted on Twitter. It may seem trivial but expectations, spoken or unspoken, shape societal norms. The feature Don’t Put a Ring on It on page 192 highlights the pervading notion that women are incomplete if they are unmarried…

SOTHEBY’S Modern and Contemporary Southeast Asian Art, until June 10 Sotheby’s brings together a wide array of works—ranging from resin figurines by Singaporean artist collective Phunk to an oil-on-canvas painting by Filipino artist Jigger Cruz—in this online sale. The auction house has also launched a series of themed online sales under the title Contemporary Showcase, each of which runs for roughly a week. sothebys.com BONHAMS Islamic and Indian Art, June 11; Asian Art Online Sale, June 22-July 1 Two of Bonhams’ most exciting sales this month are a presentation of Islamic and Indian art dating from the 7th to 19th centuries—including manuscripts, coins, jewellery, ceramics, photographs and a series of sought-after Company School paintings, which were commissioned from Indian artists by patrons in the East India Company or other foreign…

While a selection of his ultra-luxurious bag creations is stocked at Malmaison by The Hour Glass and On Pedder in Singapore, designer Ethan Koh has spent much time building a strong presence for his eponymous brand overseas, interacting with high-profile clients and collectors as well as luxury retailers including Harrods in London, Tsum in Moscow and Saks Fifth Avenue in Beverly Hills. Now the time has finally come for him to set up a permanent space for Ethan K back home. “Singapore is where I was born,” says the fourth-generation scion of homegrown tannery Heng Long Leather. “So there is a special connection, especially since it is a garden city and my collections are inspired by nature and the tropics.” Koh was pleased to rediscover the charming River Valley neighbourhood,…

It was a chance encounter of an Alfred Eisenstaedt monograph that gave Amanda Lee Koe the idea for her debut novel, Delayed Rays of a Star. In it was a 1928 picture by the German-born American photographer of three women who would become the main leads of Lee Koe’s story: German-American actress Marlene Dietrich, her idol as a teenager; Hollywood’s first Chinese-American movie star Anna May Wong; and German filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl, who was known for her Nazi propaganda films. “I was struck by the curious and banal fact that this was a photo taken before any of them became famous for the things they would soon go on to do.” Lee Koe reconstructed their lives in her fictional masterpiece, which took four years to write. “When I’m working on…

Gearing up for summertime means layering on UV protection—and if you live in Asia, you know we’re talking about way more than just a light slathering of sunscreen. From everyday umbrellas and giant face visors to high-tech beauty products and kinda weird outliers like facekinis—those beach balaclavas that have become popular over the past few years at some seaside resorts—it seems like we’ve pretty much got sun protection down pat. Or do we? As our climate and environment continue to change and new innovations hit the market, Tatler speaks with skincare experts on what everyone should know about protecting the skin they’re in. Different skin types can react differently to sun exposure, and doctors and scientists have found that Asians tend to have a thinner stratum corneum, which acts as…

The founder of Lark & Berry, Laura Chavez teaches us how to clean jewellery and bring shine back to our gems with these clever hacks How do you recommend we clean our jewellery at home? You can clean your jewellery using common household items, but the best is a mixture of liquid dish soap and water. Let your jewellery soak and then scrub it using a clean toothbrush with a soft head. Rinse with lukewarm water. Why is it important? Dead skin and bacteria will build up, especially behind the stones, which results in pieces looking dull. Scrubbing your jewellery regularly ensures your pieces will stay nicer longer. How often should we clean our jewellery? Cleaning intervals depend on how often you wear your jewellery. A quick clean once a…

Repurposing old jewellery has been the bread and butter of goldsmiths and gem dealers for centuries, but it’s fast becoming a growing trend with a new spin. As consumers grow more conscious about the environmental and ethical impact of their purchases, a practice that may have existed for centuries is now more sought-after than ever. From the simple resizing of an engagement ring to the resetting of gems from a Georgian hairpin, the range of possibilities is endless. And as sustainability becomes a way of life, we’re seeing designers rescue unloved sparklers from dusty draws and seldom-visited vaults. It’s possible to breathe new life into old pieces by recasting gems into new settings, says Hong Kong-based jewellery designer Sarah Zhuang. This involves melting down and reshaping precious metals into stylish…

It was before my time, but the 1960s sound like a jolly good decade. Bursting with colour, drama and international collaboration, it was also a superb time for watchmaking. A soaring demand for casual timepieces ensured steady growth and constant innovation, and we were all blissfully unaware of the looming disaster that was the quartz crisis (thanks for nothing, Generation Me!). This probably explains why Glashütte Original’s 2020 Sixties Edition, complete with a “glacier blue” dial, hits all my sweet spots. Glashütte has released colourful additions to its Sixties collection since 2018, and this wrist-friendly 39mm version is another worth coveting.…

There is nothing cooler than an open-worked or skeletonised watch, which is when craftsmen reveal a timepiece’s complicated inner workings, publicly exposing its glory to every Tom, Dick and Harry who appreciates good old-fashioned watchmaking. Numerous watchmakers have embraced the skeleton watch and Jaquet Droz jumped on the trend back in 2018 with its Grande Seconde Skelet-One. This year, the model has been revamped with plasma ceramic, which is made by treating white ceramic with heated gas. The resulting case is as hard, lightweight and as scratch-resistant as anything on the market.…

Like countless large-scale events, this year’s Watches & Wonders fair fell prey to the coronavirus. Its cancellation necessitated the virtual unveiling of novelties that would’ve otherwise been revealed IRL in April at Geneva’s cavernous Palexpo convention centre. But the news this year is still a big deal, even when delivered online: horology historically has been viewed as quite a male-focused affair, but many of the most attractive new releases were in the realm of women’s watchmaking. The invitation-only Watches & Wonders, which was formerly called Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie, or SIHH, showcases designs from a handful of leading independent brands in addition to the big watchmakers from the Richemont stable: A Lange & Söhne, Baume & Mercier, Cartier, IWC, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Montblanc, Panerai, Piaget, Roger Dubuis and Vacheron Constantin.…

Judith Neilson was just a child when she caught the collecting bug. She was eight or nine years old and living in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, when on a day out with her family she bought a tiny bottle of Coca-Cola for a single penny. Neilson was hooked. She loved the drink’s looping logo—and of course its taste. Now, the 72-year-old Sydney-based philanthropist owns more than 1,500 items of Coke paraphernalia, from run-of-the-mill red cans to a rare bottle covered in gold crystals that was released to celebrate the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. Her sister has said Neilson has the largest Coke bottle collection in the world, something Neilson claims is not true. But her early experiences hunting for Coke have inspired her subsequent collecting, which has been record breaking—over the past 20…

Frances Cha grew up in the US, Hong Kong and South Korea, working for several years as a travel and culture editor for CNN International in Seoul and Hong Kong, where she covered many of the more extreme trends in pop culture and beauty for a global audience. The world’s ravenous interest in stories about the prevalence of plastic surgery, the obsession with K-pop stars and the competitiveness for a top-flight education went a long way towards informing her first novel, If I Had Your Face, which tells the stories of four young women in a fast-paced, ever-intense environment where appearances are literally everything. Cha puts the societal pressures and hierarchies of Seoul in a context that defies the reader to cast judgment on her characters. Kyuri, whose face has…

It’s February 2001 and I’m a 22-year-old backpacker. Staring out at the Indian Ocean, I bury my toes into the burnt vanilla-coloured sand of Kuta Beach in Bali while watching the sky turn a pinkish orange. Suddenly, a woman approaches. “You want a massage? Only 70,000 rupiah,” she says. Ooh, that sounds lovely, I think to myself. And right here on the beach for what was about US$7 at the time? “Sure, yes,” I reply. “Manicure, too?” asks another woman, who seems to come out of nowhere with a basket filled with nail polish. Hmm, I think. It has been a while... “Sure, why not,” I answer, nodding and smiling with approval. They lay out a sarong and dig a small hole in the sand under it for my face.…

KARNTHIDA KHWANPHUK Managing director of Wine Dee Dee Thailand Wine Dee Dee Thailand is an importer and distributor known for its strength in boutique luxury wines, so perhaps it’s no surprise that its managing director picked eco-conscious Josetta Saffirio Barolo 2015 and its niche speciality Rossese Bianco, a citrussy white found principally in a vine-blanketed corner of Piemonte but originally from neighbouring Liguria. As a kicker, Saffirio has been female-run since 1975. CAROL YAU Member of the Hong Kong Wine Society and Ordre des Coteaux de Champagne, among other societies, and wine collector The current challenging environment has made Carol Yau think about wines made in difficult circumstances. Chateau Musar’s Serge Hochar with whom she had the pleasure to sit at a tasting in 2012, continued production throughout Lebanon’s civil…

PORTAL OF POSITIVITY The process of putting pen to paper has proved effective in helping those who are dealing with negative thoughts. To provide a listening ear to struggling youths in Singapore, digital letter writing platform Acceset is designed as a safe space for those who want to share their concerns anonymously and receive support. Founded in 2017, the social enterprise is helmed by 2019 Generation T honouree Oon Tian Sern (pictured), who received the Queen’s Young Leader Award for his efforts. Most recently, Acceset offered first-year students from tertiary institutions access to a text-based peer support channel to help them settle into their new school environment. The organisation also provides a listening ear for students facing problems at home or among peers, including behavioural issues such as cyberbullying and…

This issue, as we celebrate women who have broken barriers and shattered glass ceilings in their various endeavours, we spotlight two female bankers who have paved the way for their fellow womankind in the competitive world of finance. Veteran banker Laura Hwang made the news, including in the pages of Singapore Tatler, in 1984 when she became the first Singaporean managing director of international merchant bank Arbuthnot Latham Asia. Her appointment was even more significant as she was the first woman to head a bank in what was then a male-dominated sector. “While many men in the industry were initially wary of dealing with a woman, I took it as my responsibility to change their attitude as best I could through my performance,” she said. Not only is Hwang a…

TAN KHENG HUA Mother of Shi-An, 23 “Years ago, a friend introduced the concept of ‘benign neglect’ to describe how he felt we were parented. This concept worked wonders for me. On hindsight, the best thing my parents ever did was to have a simple but steady love, provide a safe home and then go about living their own lives while leaving me to my own thoughts a lot of the time. I’ve raised Shi-An in pretty much the same way. She has enough quiet to know her own mind and to find her own way. She has an unselfconscious, easy sense of freedom and follow-through, as well as her own taste and interests. She’s my responsibility, but she’s different from me and that’s okay. Unless she does something horrible,…

Swooshing about in two hulking mounds of hot pink tulle trimmed with a bedazzled empire waistline at the 2015 Grammys, Rihanna and her couture gown by Giambattista Valli set the internet ablaze at a time when leggy, cutout numbers still reigned supreme on the red carpet (that very same event saw pop stars like Gwen Stefani and Ariana Grande in varied states of nakedness). It was, for a while, a running joke that one could spot Rihanna’s pouf from space. Since then however, we’ve been exposed to gowns of cosmic proportions that render RiRi’s a mere scrunchie. Think Jennifer Lopez at her Second Act NYC premiere in 2018 in another sweeping Valli number, Lady Gaga in a fluorescent Brandon Maxwell dress at the 2019 Met Gala and, most recently, even…

GIRLHOOD Parmigiani Fleurier is predominantly known for its elegant dress watches that are, at the same time, both classic and complicated. It has now unveiled Tonda Sélène, a range of women-only watches as part of its successful Tonda 1950 line, which is named for the birth year of its founder Michel Parmigiani. These new models are set with diamonds, and feature elements such as aventurine, lace and mother-of-pearl. Choose between 33mm and 36mm—both case sizes seamlessly hug women’s wrists. ORANGE APPEAL Water is a watch’s mortal enemy, but in 2012 HYT co-founder Patrick Berdoz decided that he was going to use liquid to indicate time. The concept itself wasn’t groundbreaking—the first water clocks were used thousands of years ago—but nobody had figured out how to create one that was wrist-sized.…

The Excalibur Twofold embodies Roger Dubuis’ technical prowess. Not only does the watch look like something from out of this world, but the Excalibur Twofold also features three world premieres: a bezel and case made from Mineral Composite Fibre, which is an ultra-white material that’s been developed by the brand; patented luminescent paint on the watch’s movement; and strips of LumiSuperBiwiNova (come again?) on its strap, which now features lines that glow in the dark. Bearing the Poinçon de Genève, a certificate awarded to timepieces with remarkable finishes and decorative details, the Excalibur Twofold is a limited edition of eight pieces. LOVE, UNSCRIPTED When it comes to watches, the stars of Crash Landing On You know how to make a statement. If you’ve already watched the Korean drama on Netflix,…

During the 18th and 19th centuries, affluent consumers in China often prized a peculiarly stylish form of timepiece—distinctively decorative and novel pocket watches created by Swiss and British watchmakers—as a potent symbol of status and influence. Following the Communist Revolution of 1949, however, as western affectations and luxuries quickly fell out of favour, most of these remarkable watches disappeared or were sold off overseas. Now Chinese collectors are on a mission to bring what remain of these cultural treasures home. Often featuring illustrated enamel dials and cases decorated with florid engraving, jewels and other glittering embellishments, Chinese-market pocket watches stood in stark contrast to the more restrained, functional timepieces usually created for European consumers. The most sought-after examples feature motifs of music, chimes and more complex automatons such as mechanically…

Throughout history, the ocean has been referred to as a feminine entity—the mother, where all life began. We, and all mammals, are more connected to the ocean than we realise—even before we’re born. The amniotic fluid in a woman’s womb is remarkably similar to seawater, containing the same salts in almost exactly the same proportions. When babies’ legs begin to form, they start off as one fin-like limb. Our first movements are similar to those of fish; swimming, living and growing in an ocean-like fluid. “A lot of people have said that free diving is like being reborn or being back in the womb,” says Chelsea Yamase, better known to her 928,000 Instagram followers as Chelsea Kauai. Yamase is part of a growing community of female free divers plunging to…