Inaugural Rising Talents programme nurtures sustainable designers
A new ‘Rising Talents’ programme from Redress launched this year in tandem with our main Redress Design Award programme. The programme offers an exclusive sustainability enrichment experience to four talented applicants who had not been selected as semi-finalists, yet demonstrated exceptional potential for becoming sustainable designers in their applications.
The first edition of the programme took place in spring 2022, with participants representing regions from all over the world. Through mentorships with 13 industry experts, project pitching, and other educational activities, the programme aims to enrich the selected designers’ knowledge in circular fashion, and culminates in an opportunity for the Rising Talents to compete for a final prize by pitching to a panel of judges using their newfound knowledge.
From Hong Kong, Natalie Wan’s collection ‘Phoenix’ illustrates the idea of rebirth through upcycling silk and other recycled materials, including a kimono, to create new garments.
From Vietnam, Liz Huynh’s collection ‘Ninja Lead’ is inspired by the covered female motorbike drivers in her home country, with surplus printed fabrics sourced from Vietnamese factories.
From New York, USA, Esther Li Yitao’s collection ‘Displacement’ is influenced by image distortions, with surplus monofibre lace fabrics coloured with a sustainable printer.
From France, Giovanni Zocchetta’s collection ‘Polymer Gluttony’ highlights bodily deformity from plastic pollution through surplus silk, reused plastic bags, and recycled PLA for 3D printing.
“My favourite part of this amazing programme was the opportunity to collaborate and get honest and direct feedback from people in the industry,” Giovanni shares.
One of his mentors, Danielle Keller Aviram, adds, “Giovanni’s collection concept improved drastically and so did a lot of the technical aspects of the materials and techniques used to create the collection. I believe he has a great future in the creative industries.”
Judges from the Redress team were impressed by the growth exhibited by the Rising Talents, with Giovanni Zocchetta selected to win a 12-month professional membership from prize partner Common Objective.
All participants also receive a selection of digital fashion books from Bloomsbury Publishing: A Practical Guide to Sustainable Fashion by Alison Gwilt, Designing Fashion’s Future: Present Practice and Tactics for Sustainable Change by Alice Payne, and Fashion Design: The Complete Guide, by John Hopkins. In addition, to support our local talent in sustainable fashion development, the Hong Kong designer is awarded an overlock sewing machine from JUKI.
Upon successful completion of the programme, the Rising Talents become Redress Design Award alumni, giving them access to a network providing regular opportunities for developing their careers in sustainable fashion. They will also remain eligible to apply to future cycles of the competition.