Every year designers from all over the world anticipate this event, it’s almost like a one-day TED talk version for designers. I must say Melburnians are pretty fortunate to be hosts of the event every year! The 25th agideas took place last month at the Exhibition Center…yes it’s a bit of a delay posting this but I was waiting for decent photos to accompany this post and I finally have some to share! It’s my very first time going to agideas and even luckier for me I was granted the business pass thanks to IdN magazine. I had an opportunity to talk with IdN’s lead guy Chris about my feature in their magazine and it lead to this unexpected invitation to rep the idN booth at agideas. It’s 8am that same morning Chris and his dad came from Sydney and straight to the booth to help me and some of my uni friends to make sales throughout the day.
Photo credits: Emily Leung Design
Neil Huxley – Mothership
Masashi Kawamura – Party Lab. Photo credits: Emily Leung Design
We did get a chance to listen to some of the speakers when it wasn’t busy. One of them was Neil who’s the art director for Avatar and Watchmen and he came down to visit us at the booth to take some photos (we got swarmed with paparazzi haha!). Aside from talking to him, listening to his speech was hilarious and then it came to Masashi Kawamura. I’ve heard a lot about Masashi but didn’t catch his speech since it was busy at the booth. I love the photo my friend Emily took of this Masashi quote, he’s done major work for UNIQLO, Sony and even made Snoop Dogg’s ‘Gangsta Luv’ music video. No way.
Oh Indonesia, we’re back! Initially what mom and I hoped for was to spend my birthday and Chinese new year with Popoh but it was too unfortunate she couldn’t stay any longer. She was laid to rest last September and being in this country isn’t the same as what it used to be when she was still here.
All of her children and grandchildren including myself were given this photo to keep. I made sure I placed it in every wallet I carry to remind myself how beautiful she is and how much I love and admire her.
Before we headed to Jakarta I spent over a week with my high school friends in Singapore. It was our first overseas trip together and I already miss it. We spotted tasty $4 hawker food almost everyday, spent two nights at a hotel with unique architecture, walked endlessly from morning to nighttime, shopped till we dropped and spent a crapload of time in Kinokuniya (a Japanese bookstore we visited at least three or four times and for hours!).
I was fortunate enough to meet the family of one of my friends who we stayed at for the entire trip, it was overwhelming saying goodbye since it almost felt like us girls were also a part of their family.
Hey look, it’s the Burberry truck again! The same one I encountered in New York only this time in Singapore.
Shirokuma is green tea/matcha heaven, I say this because it literally is. Everything on the menu is matcha-flavored (can’t say no to that!) of course I had to come here since it’s the new talk of the town in Jakarta.
Cotton candy green tea ice cream….where’s the ice cream you ask? It’s in a bowl….underneath it. Nope the bowl’s not tiny, it’s just the cotton candy’s massive! And yes I’ve dyed my hair dark brown, I feel normal again hahaha.
A few hours ago I dined at Fukuro – a contemporary Japanese restaurant with professionally trained, authentic Japanese chefs who serve the most amazing Japanese food I’ve ever had. It was a far better experience than Nobu Melbourne and any Japanese restaurant I’ve stepped foot in so far. I got the chance to meet the owner, Ryo Okawa, who’s already inspired me with not only his food but moreso his unique taste in art and design. The standout is obviously the 80 Bearbricks and the collection of art on every wall in the restaurant. Not to mention the decor of the place makes you feel so chic and classy. 10/10 for everything we’ve ordered including the teriyaki chicken pie, wagyu stone grill, rice with duck liver sauce, sashimi platter and the green tea shaved ice dessert.
Although there was the sun shining so bright and the skies as blue as ever, it was one hell of a windy cold day in Arizona. Yep, that’s me chillin’ with my hello kitty hat at the Canyon. I still find it hard to believe I was in Times Square last week, Canada the week before, Disneyland the week before and Vegas the week before that. I’m so used to travelling to Asia up to the point I forget that there’s so much of the world to explore and now I might have to start getting used to the 22 hour trip to NYC because I’d seriously love to go back. A holiday for me isn’t really about getting away from work, I’m always working without knowing it. Whenever I find inspiration, I take photos and it immediately becomes my research for my upcoming projects. Travelling with me means waking up early, walking for hours and coming back late to the hotel. I’m constantly in search for new experiences because whatever I see and do influences my work and before I even know it, I come up with a new sense of style.
It actually feels great to be back in Melbs. I love the feeling of returning home to new work, new spaces and new inspiration. The last photo was taken today at Jin & Co’s new shop. I love the workspace, there’s great lighting, it’s cosy and best of all I can come in to work anytime. I also met some of Jin’s other employers who were in the shop today and let’s just say I’m excited to be a part of a dedicated team.
A right-brainer by day and occasional blogger by night, you've landed on a place where I live and breathe all things art, design, culture and fashion. You'll find me documenting my life in the creative field, endless travels with friends and family and a bit of food.