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| Mimi Ou Yang |
Jewellery News Asia has announced that Professor Mimi Ou Yang—affectionately known as “The Jade Lady”—will be honored with the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award at the fourth annual JNA Awards. Ou Yang is an internationally renowned gemologist, mineralogist and jade expert who founded the Hong Kong Gems Laboratory and H.K. Institute of Gemmology.
“With her inquisitive mind, dedication and hard work, she has made the jadeite trade more transparent, promoted high ethical standards among industry practitioners, inspired consumer confidence, and contributed to cementing the jadeite sector’s status in the international market,” said Letitia Chow, chair of the JNA Awards Judging Panel. “Professor Ou Yang exemplifies the true values of what JNA Awards promotes.”
Since 1978, Ou Yang has devoted herself to the academic research of Fei Cui Jade. For years, she travelled to Myanmar’s mining areas, collecting and studying jade samples. In 1983, she was the first to discover a terrestrial source of Ureyite while doing her research on Burmese jadeite jade. This stood out as her proudest accomplishment. Her unprecedented discovery sent shockwaves through the field of mineralogy and firmly established her academic standing as a mineralogist.
In addition to her contributions to academic research, Ou Yang played a significant role in the development of the jadeite jade market. In the early 1980s, the emergence of artificially treated and dyed jadeite jade led Ou Yang to pioneer the classification system of Fei Cui Jade treatment (“A type,” “B type,” “C type” and “B+C type”) and introduce the earliest use of Infrared Spectroscopy for B Type jadeite jade identification. In addition, she proposed a systematic approach—4C2T1V principle—for quality evaluation of Fei Cui Jade, which is now commonly used by jewelry companies and auction houses.
Ou Yang has dedicated her life to spreading jade knowledge and promoting the status and recognition of Fei Cui Jade as a precious gemstone in the international market. Her accomplishments included creating the term “Fei Cui Jade,” which significantly improved the understanding of Fei Cui Jade and the trade’s reputation among consumers.
Ou Yang also is an educator who trained and nurtured countless numbers of jewelry talents through the development of a Fei Cui Jade program and her publications.
“It is my deepest honour to be the recipient of JNA’s Lifetime Achievement Award,” Ou Yang said. “The path to becoming a Fei Cui Jade scholar was not an easy one. I am thrilled to finally receive recognition from the industry following years of hard work and perseverance. This award, while giving me tremendous pleasure, also serves as an inspiration to all the other scholars to continually serve the industry with their professional knowledge and expertise.”
Ou Yang will receive the award during the the JNA Awards 2015 Ceremony and Gala Dinner, which will be held September 20, at the Regal Airport Hotel Hong Kong.
JNA Awards 2015 is led by Rio Tinto Diamonds and Chow Tai Fook as Headline Partners, with Diarough Group, Gübelin Group, Israel Diamond Institute Group of Companies, Shanghai Diamond Exchange, and Guangdong Land Holdings Limited as Honoured Partners.
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