\t\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\tAfa Ah Loo and Christian Siriano on the set of \u201cProject Runway.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tNBCU Photo Bank\/NBCUniversal via<\/cite><\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n \n\tRather than focus on the nature of his death or that it had occurred at a \u201cNo Kings\u201d march, Powell said he focused on the designer\u2019s legacy and the celebration of the fashion show. He said he emphasized Ah Loo\u2019s creativity, his collection and the impact that he had on others. \u201cHe was so kind and so giving. That was really the message from everyone, who was there that night \u2014 those he had sewn for, worked with and had done workshops with,\u201d Powell said.<\/p>\n \n\tThe designer\u2019s young daughter, Vera, opened the show, as the first model to hit the runway. \u201cVera is her dad all over. She dances. She is very open with a really great spirit. She was really excited,\u201d Powell said. \u201cI think she was very aware that that was the night for her dad\u2019s tribute. You could see it in her eyes and on her face.\u201d<\/p>\n \n\tAfter Ah Loo\u2019s final designs were modeled, Vera returned to the runway with her mother and brother Isaac to close out the collection, as a video of the late designer played on a wall as a backdrop. That clip from last year\u2019s show was taken as his children ran toward him on the runway.<\/p>\n \n\tPowell said he told the crowd about how he and Ah Loo came to the U.S. as illiterate immigrants, landed their professional positions and how they started Creative Pacific to service the AAPI community and for those \u201cwho don\u2019t see themselves in what we both do.\u201d He also spoke of Ah Loo\u2019s trajectory as a designer. Noting how Ah Loo\u2019s final looks were made by two American designers, who had no Pacific Island heritage, Powell said, \u201cThe beauty of that was that Ah Loo was very culturally tied to his designs.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The fashion designer and former \u201cProject Runway\u201d contestant Arthur \u201cAfa\u201d Ah Loo\u2019s final collection was showcased Friday in a runway show in Salt Lake City, Utah. The 39-year-old was shot and killed during a \u201cNo Kings\u201d march and demonstration there on June 14, as reported. The investigation into his death is in screening, according to Keith Chalmers, communications manager for Salt Lake County\u2019s district attorney. Two designers Janae Pettit and Natalie Workman, who shared a studio with Ah Loo, created his final designs after finding his sketches following his death. Friday\u2019s show at the Natural History Museum of Salt Lake City was organized by the Creative Pacific Foundation, the nonprofit that he founded with Benjamin Powell. The event featured an assortment of designs by AAPI creatives, including some from Ah Loo, who was born in Samoa. Coincidentally, Friday\u2019s runway show was held three years after he and Powell first held a Creative Pacific fashion show. There were 425 seated guests at the runway show, which like the rest of the plans for the event had been \u201cset in stone\u201d with Ah Loo, Powell said. In years past, the pair produced the show with the designer handling the backstage scene and Powell emceeing. Thousands knew Ah Loo for being a contestant on season 17 of Bravo\u2019s \u201cProject Runway.\u201d After being ousted for a creation that combined a hammock with a map that didn\u2019t pass muster with judges like Christian Siriano and Nina Garcia, Ah Loo returned to Salt Lake City to run his namesake business. \u201cWas it emotional? Yes, I had my moments, but I had to push through. There were 425 people to tend to, designers to take care of and contracts to figure out, and vendors to deal with,\u201d Powell said. \u201cThere were swag bags to tend to and a VIP hour from 7 to 8 [p.m. MST]. I had to check-in with the hair and makeup people to make sure they were good, and all of the other people behind-the-scenes.\u201d Although Ah Loo\u2019s last collection will not be sold commercially, it will be sho…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4376,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4375"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=4375"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4375\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/4376"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=4375"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=4375"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=4375"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"PROJECT](\"https:\/\/wwd.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/06\/GettyImages-1130773100.jpg?w=300\")
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