“This my first time wearing an áo dài, what do you think?” asked Will Nguyen, founder of LA design gallery Collective Form, as he showed off his traditional gold silk Vietnamese formalwear to designers Eric Chang, Claudette McCarron, James Fung , and Noz Nozawa . “I ordered it three days ago from a tailor in Vietnam and it just arrived!” The group, all executive board members of the Asian American Pacific Islander Design Alliance , was helping to welcome the more than 300 guests—including designers, architects, and other industry members—who had arrived at the Audrey Irmas Pavilion in Los Angeles on May 6 for the inaugural AAPIDA Gala.

Guests arriving at the Audrey Irmas Pavilion in Koreatown

sakanashi

AAPIDA co-founders and AD PRO Directory members Jessica Davis and Young Huh

Akashi Creative

Founded five years ago by designers Jessica Davis and Young Huh , AAPIDA, as the national nonprofit organization is known, is dedicated to engaging and promoting Asian Americans working across the home and design…