ITS Contest 2023 reveals shortlist of 16 finalists from 11 countries

The ITS Contest emerging designer competition has revealed its 16 finalists, chosen from 750 applicants from 65 countries by a jury of fashion experts and talent scouts headed by Barbara Franchin, founder of the award and president of the ITS Foundation.

“We are witnessing a generational change in fashion, the emergence of new references. A new generation of designers is making their mark and young talents are realizing this and charting new paths,” said Franchin. “The fashion industry is currently experiencing a moment of enormous confusion and transformation, as the role of creative directors is redefined. What will the designers of the future be like? “The role seems to move away from the creative process as business becomes the priority,” he added.

The ITS Competition jury has shortlisted 16 designers for the final event of the competition, scheduled for March 22. This is Ivan Delogu from Italy; Chelsea Jean Lamm and Marcel Sommer (Germany); Clementine Baldo, Shanon Poupard and Lilian Navarro (France); Daniel Bosco (Canada); Ju Bao and Kexuan Liu (China); Mert Serbest (Türkiye); Momoka Sato and Tomohiro Shibuki (Japan); Silvia Acien Parrilla (Spain); Eun Ji Oh (Belgium); Tal Maslavi (Israel); and Richard Farbey (United Kingdom).

All finalists have received an ITS residency and will remain in Trieste, Italy, headquarters of ITS, for a creative residency, collaborating on a collective project under the auspices of ITS Arcademy-Museum of Art in Fashion, the first contemporary museum. Museum of fashion in Italy, home to more than 15,000 design projects collected during the 20-year history of the ITS Competition. The museum will organize an exhibition of the collections presented in the 2023 edition of the award.

Finalists will also compete for various cash prizes and mentoring opportunities, which will be awarded at the March finals.

ITS Contest was first held in 2002 and is one of the largest emerging designer competitions in the world. In its 20 years of history, it has had more than 15,000 fashion, accessories and jewelry designers and photographers from more than 80 countries. Among them, some of the biggest creative names to emerge in recent times, such as Demna, Matthieu Blazy, Nicolas di Felice and Richard Quinn, Chopova Lowena and Cecilie Bahnsen.