AMBER CHIA ACADEMY 1st GRADUATION AT 1UTAMA

KE@FSWMAG.COM

Amber Chia wore happy red as her son is fine while my adopted French son Dedione Kee died aged 13 years on 5 May 2011, 2 days before her inaugural graduation

Kurt Chin won Best Male Model 2011

Amber Chia and Simon Yam from Canon awarded Kurt Chin the grand prize

Wafa de Korte won Best Female Model 2011

Amber Chia, Best Female Model and Simon Yam from Canon

The graduating and winning students of the first graduation of Amber Chia Academy

The spectacular couture from Keith Kee

AMBER CHIA ACADEMY, SPECIALISING IN, GUESS WHAT, MODELLING, HELD ITS FIRST GRADAUTION CEREMONY LAST MAY 6 AT ONE UTAMA SHOPPING MALL.

IT WAS A HISTORIC OCCASION AS NOT ONLY WAS THE GRADUATION THE FIRST IN THE YOUNG HISTORY OF AMBER CHIA ACADEMY, I ALSO WON BEST DRESSED MAN! OF COURSE THIS SHOULD NOT COME AS A SURPRISE AS NO MAN OR WOMAN EXCEPT THE GODS AND GODDESSES, ARE BETTER DRESSED THAN ME.

Kee Hua Chee was Best Dressed Man and Gillian Hung was Best Dressed Woman. No one came close as we the bestest!

Kee Hua Chee won Best Dressed Man. Amber Chia presented prize to him

Gillian Hung won Best Dressed Woman

WHAT WAS SURPRISING; I WAS RELATIVELY LOW-KEY IN BLACK AS I WAS MOURNING THE DEATH OF MY 13 YEAR OLD ADOPTED FRENCH SO N DEDIONE KEE WHO DIED ON 4 MAY AND ASCENDED TO HEAVEN TO SIT AT BUDDHA'S FEET AND WAIT FOR ME TO JOIN HIM SO WE COULD WORSHIP BUDDHA FOR ETERNITY. OR HE COULD BE AT THE FEET OF JESUS CHRIST NOW, WAITING FOR ME TO JOIN HIM SO WE COULD WORSHIP THE LORD TILL THE END OF ETERNITY.

Kee Hua Chee being grilled by the two emcees

Amber Chia joining in as she should since this was her event

Even baby Ashton wanted to be part of the action

The stage was as dramatic and eye catching as the people pictured here


CONSIDERING DEDIONE KEE DIED ONLY 3 DAYS BEFORE AMBER CHIA'S FIRST GRADUATION, I WAS IN NO MOOD TO MAKE MERRY BUT SINCE THE SUPERMODEL IS A DEAR FRIEND, I WORE ALL BLACK AND WENT WITH THOMAS TEH THE PILOT.

Amber Chia, top jeweller Winnie Sin, celeb Stefanie Chua and Russian beauty Eliana Efendieva

The great leg show

Amber Chia holding Kee Hua Chee who was in mourning for his dead son Dedione Kee who went to heaven on 4 May 2011

Kee Hua Chee managed a wry smile for the camera though his heart was shattered due to the death of his adopted French son Dedione Kee

Amber Chia and Thomas Teh

Top jeweller Winnie Sin and Ford Supermodel 2010 Kelly Jagan

Winnie Sin and Thomas Teh comforting Kee Hua Chee over his sorrow

Winning Best Dressed Male was not on my mind as I arrived and sat meekly to watch the fashion show and models which were almost world class. The models were good and the top ones were superb as they were trained by Amber Chia and catwalk guru Benjamin Toong. I guess they had to be good as the lousy ones would not have graduated and even if they scraped through, would be put on the backburner somewhere deep in the dark recesses of back stage!

The fashion show!

What a bod! Kurt Chin was awarded Best Male Model and his body had plenty to do with the judges' decision!

This is the proof. Kurt Chin's victory was a walkover

Pink legs so pretty

Don't you love the curly wurly thingies?

Avant garde couture by Carven Ong

Keith Kee Couture. Even the lining is a work of art~!

And the brides wore coloured veils?

Very sensual and eye catching, like dance of the 7 veils

High drama and getting into a cab may pose problems

Thank God it was only an umbrella! But her hairdo poses the same problem getting in and out of taxis

Blonde bombshell

If her hair doesn't get her attention, nothing will

Final parade

What a good view

Gorgeous gowns

The wiggiest of them all

The guy looked like a porcelain doll

With that ass and 9-inch heels, this must be Benjamin Toon the catwalk guru

Getting his certificate

Group pix

Getting the prize from Canon the best camera in town

Wafa won Best Female Model, congrats!

Canon was the main sponsor

Keith Kee, Kenny Loh, Shirley and daughter and Thomas Teh

Leon and co

So dishy is Leon

Ben Toong in action with his 9 inch heels

His centre of gravity was excellent as he could freeze like this for 10 hours...

Kee Hua Chee and Gillian Hung

A handsome bloke for the grand finale

he expertise of catwalk guru Benjamin Toong, makeup master Desmond Yoi and photographer extraordinaire Azrul Kevin Abdullah, fifty-five students graduated at the Amber Chia Academy Inaugural Graduation Show at 1 Utama Shopping Centre's "Fashion on One" Fashi

In a grand celebration was emceed by Daphne Iking and TP Lim, graduating students took to the runway for a fashion show, parading casual wear by Bimba & Lola, couture wear by Keith Kee Couture and avant-garde designs by Carven Academy of Fashion. In addition, there was also a captivating makeup showcase of dramatic proportions.

Since its inception in August 2010, Amber Chia Academy has provided its students with countless prospects as part of their courses. Even before graduating, students were given exclusive opportunities to work with some of Malaysia’s top designers such as Keith Kee and Carven Ong, as well as stints in FHM Girl Next Door Model Search, Women of Excellence Summit 2010, Future of Success Summit 2010 and many more. Other beauty and fashion events that featured collaboration with gurus and students of Amber Chia Academy included some of the industry’s big names such as Roxy, Pantene, Olay, Redken and Ginvera.

After the fashion show, graduates received their precious graduation certificates in the presence of over 300 guests, which included fashionista Gillian Hung; designers Andrew Gan, Key Ng, Keith Kee, Allan Chan and Tino Soon from Salabianca; celebrities Alan Yun and Angel Wong; celebrity models Stefanie Chua, Wilson Tan, Danny Lim, Eleen Yong, Ian Ong and Isaac Ong; Andrew Tan from Andrewsmodels, Melvin Cheong from Catwalk Productions and founder of the Malaysia Book of Records Datuk Danny Ooi. Also present were family members of the graduates and members of the media. Amber Chia Academy also presented awards for Most Promising Male & Female Models, Best Photography, Best Makeup Presentation and Best Dramatic Walk to outstanding students at the show.

“I cannot be anymore prouder of all my students especially to see the models, makeup artists and photographers that they have grown to become. I am sincerely glad that their time at Amber Chia Academy has provided ample opportunities for them to gain a solid head-start in pursuing their passions, and I wish them all the best on their respective paths“, gushed principal Amber Chia, beaming with pride.

With the launch of Amber Chia Academy Melaka in December 2010, Amber Chia Academy is currently school to over 300 students. In March 2011, model Ethel Cho, an international runway veteran, was brought in as modeling coach, joining an esteemed team of eleven other instructors to share her wealth of experience and knowledge with students.

Leading international brand Canon generously acted as the main sponsor of the graduation show, which was also collaboratively sponsored by Philips. Other sponsors of the graduation show include Celmonze, Triumph, Kronenbourg, Celebrity Fitness, Runway Productions, 807 Studio and 1 Utama Shopping Centre.

The rest of the year is set to be an exciting time for Amber Chia Academy as its expansion plans involve the opening of another academy in Penang in June, as well as introduction of new and advanced courses unlike any other in Malaysia, which include interesting makeup techniques, technology and certification in collaboration with Korea Pro Makeup Association (KPMA).

A memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed between Amber Chia and KPMA President Ahn Mi- Ryeo, at the official launch of the 2011 Makeup Festival Award in Seoul, South Korea last Saturday (April 30th) evening. Through this deal, Amber Chia Academy propelled Malaysia to be only the third country, after China and Taiwan, offering exclusive makeup courses recognised and certified by Korea.

Also, just the day before (April 29th), Amber Chia scored yet another deal by signing a MoU with Korea Model Association (KMA) chairman Yang Eui-Sig. KMA is the only government-sanctioned body under South Korea’s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, and they prestigiously appointed Amber Chia Academy as the exclusive representative to select top models from Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Kong for the prestigious Asia Model Festival Award; and scout for up-and-coming models for the annual Asia New Face Model Search.

THE END

Amber Chia Academy's Inaugural Graduation

Amber Chia Academy's Inaugural Graduation Show - Spring/Summer 2011 @ One Utama

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