European Fashion Award: FASH 2009 New Diversity

( http://designawards4us.com/index.php/design-awards/european-fashion-award-fash-2009.html )Topic: "New Diversity "We are living in an era of substantial change. Clothing behavior is becoming continuously more diverse. Not only young people put together their garments in the "supermarket of styles", but instead almost all age and style groups. When it is done well, it is a chance to express one's own culture and not in the sense of "anything goes".

The prizes awarded by the Stiftung der Deutschen Bekleidungsindustrie (German Fashion Industry Foundation) - SDBI - looked for fashion under the title "New Diversity" in line with the needs of the environment and social policy this year. New materials and cuts, secondhand and recycling, favorite pieces and new work processes – these are the ideas for solutions of the prizewinners.

Registration deadline: June 16th 2008
Submission deadline: November 3rd 2008 (brief concept, documentation, 1 outfit)
Entry fee: Free
Who can enter: Students from 4th semester or higher
Awards: N/A

In addition, the SDBI also received an award for its pioneering work pointing the way to the future as a "Selected Landmark 2008" within the framework of a contest held by German government and business
world: "365 Landmarks in the Land of Ideas".

Topic: "New Diversity"
We are living in an era of substantial change. Clothing behavior is becoming continuously more diverse. Not only young people put together their garments in the "supermarket of styles", but instead almost all age and style groups. When it is done well, it is a chance to express one's own culture and not in the sense of "anything goes". Consequently, customers surf between fashion worlds, break up the culture and identity of brands and merge them with other sectors and genres to express their own identity. This can be upgrade or understatement, work or leisure time, style or sport, haute couture or casual, function or communication as well as an aim among the trendsetters or unknowingly in the mass market.
This is a challenge for traditional fashion, because the clearness of brands is clashing increasingly with the variety of life. This hybrid fashion is also a challenge for designers with attitude.

Schedule and deadlines

* Official announcement of the topic FASH 2009: March 2008
* Registration deadline: June 16th 2008
* Submission deadline: November 3rd 2008 (brief concept, documentation, 1 outfit)
* Jury session: November 11th and 12th 2008
* Awarding of Prizes: February 1st 2009 during ispo winter 09

The task is to design this new diversity. How can you design variety instead of uniformity, collages instead of decals, flexible offers instead of rigid styles and still create a clear design statement? What does this hybrid and self-assured behavior of customers mean for the driving forces of fashion such as status and recognition as well as prestige and copying desires? Is the current fashion offer based on the needs of consumers or the rules of the industry?
Is there need for innovative clothing systems with multiple functions? Is it a question of combining several genres to create a new one? It is sufficient to design an open system? Do you offer fashion modules, or should consumers be made co-designers? Do digital strategies such as mapping, sampling, hacking or copy and paste provide strategies for consumers to stage their own looks? Are clear orientation offers required or liquid identities? Are there changes in the system or completely new, visionary clothing strategies? Or is the solution less in fashion design and more in new design of distribution and/or communication? What lets consumers dream, and what appeals to their desires?
An analysis, a concept and a design should be worked out. Working on a partial area is possible. Season, segment (e.g. business, leisure or sports clothing) and genre can be selected freely as well as the choice between womenswear, menswear or a complete collection. Supplementary accessories are possible.

Participants
The competition is addressed to particularly gifted design students of all creational disciplines, especially textile and fashion design. Students from 4th semester or higher are eligible. Students from lower semesters can take part within groups of different semesters.

The participants have to be currently enrolled at a European university or fashion college.
The design work should be created for this competition. Works can be submitted by single persons or – which is particularly desired – by interdisciplinary teams and/or co operations with businesses.

Intermediate exam or diploma, Bachelor and Master works are also possible if they correspond to the task and have been made in 2008. The submitted works should not have be released to the public previously.

To enter visit: FASH 2009 website ( http://www.sdbi.de/link/en/16188137 )