REDRESS REVEALS NEW LINEUP OF EMERGING SUSTAINABLE DESIGNERS WITH THE TALENT TO TACKLE FASHION’S GROWING WASTE PROBLEM
Public voting for the ‘People’s Choice Award’ now open until 6 May
April 17, 2019 – Hong Kong – The world’s largest sustainable fashion design competition, the Redress Design Award announces the 2019 cycle semi-finalists. The 30 outstanding designers represent the brightest talent in a growing swell of ambitious young designers working to tackle the environmental challenges of the fashion industry. As the world wakes up to the enormity of fashion’s negative footprint, from carbon emissions, water pollution and chemical use to spiralling over-consumption and waste, the Redress Design Award showcases the critical role designers can play in finding solutions.
Focusing on the need to eliminate textile waste the competition challenges emerging fashion designers and students to explore the circular economy through the core sustainable design techniques of zero-waste, up-cycling and reconstruction. Redress Founder & Board Chair, Dr. Christina Dean noted:
“If the fashion industry carries on with a business-as-usual linear model, carbon emissions from textile production alone are set to rise by more than 60% by 2030, but these emerging designers give us hope for a future where textile waste is valued, and where responsible design, production and consumption with circularity in mind are the norm.”
For the first time in the competition’s nine-year history menswear designers were included alongside unisex and womenswear designers, expanding the scope of Redress’ global search for talent. Another first for the competition sees the introduction of industry surplus textiles with a surprise selection of Eastman Naia™ sustainable fabrics, which the semi-finalists will be further challenged to incorporate into their main competition collection designs if they reach the final round of the competition.
The 30 semi-finalists now face the next round of assessment by the International Judging Panel of industry experts to decide the final short-list of 10 finalists who will be taking part in an intensive week of sustainable fashion education and design challenges in Hong Kong this September. The climax of the competition will see the finalists showcase their collections during a live Grand Final at Hong Kong’s CENTRESTAGE, where they will vie for First Prize – the opportunity to design a sustainable collection for a brand of JNBY Group, one of China’s leading fashion houses.
With applications from across 6 continents the 2019 cycle received strong interest from China making up 25% of the applications, along with three designers from Redress’ home city of Hong Kong in the semi-finals showing a clear growing interest in sustainable fashion in the region. The competition is also celebrating semi-finalist designers for the first time from Bangladesh, Bulgaria and Hungary.
Ruth Farrell, Global Marketing Director of Eastman, Textile and Redress Design Award judge commented, “It has been very exciting to see talented young designers in the competition living and breathing sustainability, their designs show creative flair and innovative thinking built on a strong foundation of sustainability.”
The 30 Semi-finalists will join the 150 strong global Redress Design Award Alumni Network and benefit from access to multiple professional development opportunities to boost their knowledge and careers. They will also receive a selection of books focused on sustainable design from Prize Sponsor Bloomsbury Publishing.
Voting opens to select the public’s favourite From now until 6 May 2019, the public can vote for their favourite semi-finalist designer based on their sketches and statements. Find out more about this cycle’s semi-finalists and their inspirational zero-waste, up-cycled and reconstructed designs at www.redressdesignaward.com
The Redress Design Award 2019 Semi-finalists are:
Region 1
- Moriah Ardila, Israel, Unisex
- Chan Jianfeng, Hong Kong, Womenswear
- Chan Meiyan, Hong Kong, Womenswear
- Nishtha Dua, India, Womenswear
- Joey Han, P.R China, Unisex
- He Mengmeng, P.R. China, Womenswear
- Franziska Knitsch, India (German), Womenswear
- Leung Holam, Hong Kong, Womenswear
- Damini Mittai, India, Womenswear
- MD Parvez, Bangladesh, Womenswear
- Anita Prayogo, Singapore, (Indonesian) Menswear
- Ryota Sakai, Japan, Womenswear
- Pragya Sharma, India, Womenswear
- Natalie Tzur, Israel, Menswear
- Yu Yiting, Taiwan, Womenswear
Region 2
- Emma Bogren, Spain (Swedish), Womenswear
- Nessie Croft, Australia, Womenswear
- Denitsa Damyanova, Bulgaria, Womenswear
- Julia English, Australia, Unisex
- Abby Gaskin, USA (Canadian), Womenswear
- Anna Keomegi, UK (Latvian), Menswear
- Sarah Mayer, Belgium, Womenswear
- Julia Talita Pagenkopf, Germany, Womenswear
- Carina Roca Portella, Spain, Womenswear
- Anna Schuster, Germany, Menswear
- Alina Stanila, UK, Womenswear
- Zsófia Tátrai, Hungary, Menswear
- Olivia Thorpe, UK, Menswear
- Saveliin Uuskula, UK (Estonian), Womenswear
- Maddie Williams, UK, Womenswear
- Editor’s Notes
The Redress Design Award 2019 was open to emerging designers and students with less than three years’ professional experience from around the globe, focused on womenswear, menswear or unisex fashion design. Finalists will be announced on 15 May 2019. - The Redress Design Award 2019 Regional Judges are Vanessa Cheung (Group Managing Director of Nan Fung Development Limited & Founder of The Mills), Ruth Farrell, Janko Lam (Design Director & Founder of Classic Anew), Tillman Lauterbach (Creative Director, REVERB (JNBY GROUP), Queennie Yang (Editor (Asia), Vogue International), Marieke Eyskoot (Author, Consultant & Co-founder of MINT), Magdalena Schaffrin (CEO and Co-Founder, Kaleidoscope Berlin), Tara St James (Founder of Study NY, Production Coordinator and Research Fellow of Brooklyn Fashion + Design Accelerator)
- The People’s Choice vote has no impact on the final selection of the 10 Redress Design Award finalists
- The competition is run by Redress and benefits from sponsorship from The Create Hong Kong of the Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Eastman Naia™, JNBY Group, UPS, DLA Piper, ADMCF, Common Objective and JUKI among others.
- Eastman Naia™ cellulosic yarn is produced in a safe, closed-loop process where solvents are recycled back into the system for reuse.
- Visit our LEARN platform www.redressdesignaward.com/learn for resources on how to source, design and market sustainable fashion and find out more about the Sustainable Fashion Educator Pack at www.redressdesignaward.com/educatorpack
High-resolution images available for download here:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/fklyd5ekniqe3qy/AADKSMPTydqcs9mB_NO1Aorha?dl=0
About Redress (wwww.redress.com.hk / ww.redressdesignaward.com)
The Redress Design Award (formerly the EcoChic Design Award) was developed by and is wholly organised by Redress. Redress is a an environmental charity with a mission to prevent and transform textile waste to catalyse a circular economy and reduce fashion’s water, chemical and carbon footprints. Their programmes work to change mindsets and practices to stop the creation of textile waste now and in the future, as well as creating systems and partnerships that generate and showcase value in existing waste. Working directly with designers, manufacturers, brands, educational bodies, government and consumers, Redress aims to create lasting environmental change in fashion.
About The Create Hong Kong (www.createhk.gov.hk) The Create Hong Kong is a dedicated agency set up under the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau on 1 June 2001 to lead, champion and drive the development of the creative economy in Hong Kong. It co-ordinates Government policy and effort regarding creative industries, focuses Government’s resources catering for the promotion and speeding up the development of creative industries in Hong Kong, and works closely with the trade to boost the development of creative industries.*