The eight finalists of this year’s LVMH Prize have been announced. The most diverse group of designers to make the cut since the prize was founded back in 2013, this year’s list celebrates talent from across the world, with designers from Israel, Nigeria and South Africa making the cut for the first time ever.
The full list of eight designers is Anrealage by Kunihiko Morinaga, Bethany Williams, Bode by Emily Adams Bode, Hed Mayner, Kenneth Ize by Kenneth Izedonmwen, Phipps by Spencer Phipps, Stefan Cooke and Thebe Magugu. Uniting them all is a commitment to ecological responsibility, with many of the designers focusing on upcycling as part of their sourcing strategy.
“First and foremost, we appraise the creativity of the candidates,” Delphine Arnault, Executive VP of Louis Vuitton and founder of the LVMH Prize, said in a statement. “Naturally, if it is combined with an ethical and environmental awareness at the service of creation, then so much the better. This was the case at Phipps, with Spencer Phipps’s fabric sourcing and his informed approach to the environment. Or for instance with Bethany Williams, who is committed to aiding minorities through her involvement in fashion.”
The list makes history with a record-breaking number of applications for the prize — over 1,700. The winner, announced in June, will be the first decided by a jury that does not include Karl Lagerfeld, after the legendary designer passed away last month.
“Each new edition brings its lot of firsts,” says Arnault. “It goes to show the reach of the Prize on the one hand, and on the other, the reach of fashion, its ability to touch more and more people, thanks in part to the internet.
