Loro Piana announced the winners of the sixth edition of the Loro Piana Knit Design Award, an international competition dedicated to talented students that give their own creative interpretation of some iconic yarns that represent the excellence of the maison. Through this initiative Loro Piana continues to maintain its commitment to training and supporting young talents, with the aim of passing on the inestimable experience in the field of textiles that is one of its hallmarks.
The theme of this edition is “Rediscovery”: rediscovering a heritage and its roots in a spirit of curiosity and inventiveness that leads to explore everything around us in a new guise. The protagonist of this style exercise is one of Loro Piana’s icons, the Traveller Jacket, a perfect synthesis of natural elegance and versatility.
Students from six schools of fashion and design – North Carolina State University, Institue Francais de la Mode, Heriot Watt University of Edinburgh, the Politecnico di Milano, Shenkar College of Tel Aviv and Bunka Fashion College of Tokyo – were asked to reinterpret the Traveller Jacket and create a personal, knitwear version, delving into tradition and future, tailoring and experimentation.
After an initial briefing, the young designers had the opportunity to see and learn about the maison’s extremely high-quality materials and know-how, and to observe and collaborate with the R&D team, participating in guided visits of knitting workshops to discover the entire production process at a first-hand level.
The project finalists were presented on June 21st at Loro Piana’s new headquarters in Milan, with a jury of experts made up of some internal representatives including CEO Damien Bertrand, as well as Sara Sozzani Maino, Head of Special Projects for Vogue Italia, Beka Gvishiani, founder of Stylenotcom, Chet Lo, knitwear designer, and Letizia Schatzinger , Tiktoker & content creator.̈tzinger, TikToker and content creator,The winners were students Po-Chieh Chiu and Shanon Poupard from the Institut Français de la Mode, Paris.
The winning pair received the prestigious Loro Piana Knit Design Award 2022 and, for the first time, an employment contract with the company. The two students will also have the opportunity to create the finished garment in the knitwear workshop of the maison’s historic Italian site alongside Loro Piana artisans, experience first-hand all the stages that lead to the creation of an item, and learn secrets and small attentions from the maison‘s team of professionals, who will put their experience at their service, to make the Traveller Jacket in a revamped guise. The project will be shown during Pitti Filati, scheduled in Florence from June 29 to July 1.
Always attentive to young people and their professional and managerial development, Loro Piana continues to be a reference point for training new talents. Over the years, the maison has been able to construct a solid network and is actively involved with professional schools, business schools and universities. A virtuous circle that not only facilitates young people’s entry into the job market, but also aims to pass down the company’s fundamental values of artisanal craftsmanship and savoir-faire to new generations.
For more fashion news CLICK HERE.