International Fashion Showcase 2019 names winners
The International Fashion Showcase taking place at Somerset House
alongside London Fashion Week has named Thebe Magugu from South Africa as
this year’s winner.
The biennial fashion presentation, a partnership between the British
Council, British Fashion Council, London College of Fashion, UAL and
Somerset House, nurtures and presents work from the best up-and-coming
fashion talent from around the world. This year the event included the work
of sixteen designers from Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, India,
Georgia, Italy, Kenya, Lebanon, Lithuania, Netherlands, Rwanda, South
Africa, Sri Lanka, Uruguay and Vietnam.
Thebe Magugu from South Africa was crowned the winning designer of the
International Fashion Showcase 2019 after the judging panel called him “a
leader of his generation” as his installation “not only has striking visual
impact but real clarity. It is a space which gives a sense of past, present
and a bright future for Thebe and his country”.
Each designer taking part in the free exhibition presented an
installation representing their respective country, with designers
exploring politics, sustainability, identity and heritage to showcase their
latest designs in immersive environments. For his installation, Magugu
presented designs featuring motifs from Africa’s story-rich past but with a
forward-looking, global approach, with his installation illustrating the
profound changes in South Africa by putting the country’s constitution
centre stage.
Thebe Magugu from South Africa wins International Fashion Showcase
2019
Alongside Magugu, the judges also presented a number of special
mentions, with Duran Lantink from Netherlands awarded a special mention for
his collection. The judges said: “There is a sense that the collection is
only the beginning of a continuous exploration with countless possibilities
and impacts on others working in the fashion industry.”
Duran presented straight from the sale bins questioning the permanent
state of sale and discount in the fashion industry, casting a critical eye
on the phenomena of Black Friday and the resulting sales riots. He also
presented 0 Percent Duran, Lantink’s brand which creates fashion without
production and refashions garments from discount sites or outlets, giving
them a new appeal.
While Cedric Mizero from Rwanda was given a special mention for his
curation, for using objects from everyday life in a Rwandan village,
including rush mats and pill cases to draw attention to the issues of
marginalised communities and cultures in his country. The judges commented:
“Cedric Mizero is without doubt a cultural changemaker for his country. His
work has the ability to collapse the local and the global into a message
that is universal and deeply human.”
The winners were decided by a panel of cultural and commercial fashion
experts chaired by Sarah Mower, British Fashion Council ambassador for
emerging talent and chief critic at Vogue.com.
Alongside the exhibition, each of the designers were supported through a
bespoke online programme, developed by London College of Fashion, UAL,
which covered all aspects of business development from branding to sales
and production to sustainability. They also travelled to London in August
2018 to attend a two-week talent development programme. This tailored
cultural residency and business skills training was developed to give the
emerging designers the professional support that is often difficult to
access, provided by some of the UK’s leading fashion and creative experts.
The International Fashion Showcase was established in the year of the
London Olympics as a platform for emerging fashion designers to exhibit
their work during London Fashion Week as a competition that shares the same
values of the Olympics; fraternity, respect, equality and excellence. Since
2012, more than 600 of international designers from 70 countries have
exhibited as part of the exhibition.
Being part of International Fashion Showcase can be the springboard to
international recognition. Eight designers who have previously shown as
part of the International Fashion Showcase have been nominated for the LVMH
prize, 32 nominated for the Woolmark prize and four have won awards, these
include Bodice and The-Sirius, while 15 have shown on-schedule at London
Fashion Week including Rejina Pyo and Xiao Li, and five have been awarded
NewGen sponsorship.
The free International Fashion Showcase exhibition runs until February
24 at Somerset House in London.
Images: courtesy of International Fashion Showcase by James
Gifford-Mead/Agnese Sanvito