H&M Design Awards 2014

H&M has just announced the eight finalists for the H&M Design Awards 2014. The finalists chosen are quite an international mix from design schools around the world as one of the most promising talents of their generation.

The finalists have each won €5000, and will now present their work to an international jury that will determine the winner of the competition.

The winner will receive €50,000 and the chance to present winning collection on January 28th during Mercedes-Benz Stockholm Fashion Week. The winner will also develop pieces from the winning collection to be sold at selected H&M stores this Fall.

This year's prestigious jury includes which includes London-based designer Erdem, actress Michelle Dockery, style expert Michelle Harper, Serena Hood the executive fashion editor of Vogue UK, Sara Maino senior fashion editor of Vogue Italy, plus Ann-Sofie Johansson who is H&M’s head of design and of course Margareta van den Bosch, H&M’s creative advisor.

“I am so excited about the finalists for the H&M Design Award 2014. Each one has a sense of unique creativity, amazing technical skills, and the vision to push fashion forward. I can’t wait to see who will win!” says Ann-Sofie Johansson, H&M’s head of design.

THE FINALISTS

EDDY ANEMIAN – 24-year-old Eddy is from Saint Chamond in France and is currently studying at La Cambre in Brussels. For the H&M Design Award 2014, he presented his fourth-year collection, inspired by Tilda Swinton in the movie I Am Love and the French painter Ingres.

CAMILLA BLASE WOODMAN – Camilla, 26, was born in Bristol in the UK, and studied knitwear at the Royal College of Art in London. Her collection takes inspiration from the dystopian vision of the future found in the 1988 movie They Live, resulting in graphic metallic knits matched with fuzzy knits inspired by white noise.

JIA HUA – Chinese-born Jia, 25, studied in the MFA program at Parsons in New York. Jia’s collection was inspired by artists such as Dan Flavin, Mickalene Thomas and Caroline Larsen. She mixes traditional craft techniques with contemporary sportswear and combines different materials, such as chiffon with sporty meshes.


DEVON HALFNIGHT LEFLUFY – Originally from Vancouver, Canada, 29-year-old Devon recently graduated from the Masters year at the Royal Academy in Antwerp. His luxury streetwear for men has already been stocked by stores such as Opening Ceremony and RA.

XIAO LI – 26-year-old Xiao Li is from China and studied for her MA at the Royal College of Art in London. Her interest is in garments of the future, with a focus on wearability. Her techniques include combining silicone with knits to create innovative fabrics and making molds of her knit fabrics.

LINA MICHAL – Born in Gothenburg, Sweden, 25-year-old Lina recently graduated from Beckmans College of Design in Stockholm. Her collection is inspired by nature, and takes decorative elements from Swedish traditions such as Midsummer and folk costumes for brides, using organic volumes and surface manipulation.


SOPHIE SÄLEKARI – 22-year-old Sophie was born in Helsinki and studied at the city’s Aalto University School of Art, Design and Architecture. In her Russian-folk-inspired collection presented for the H&M Design Award 2014, she explored color, print and texture, and how to use fabrics in unexpected ways.

HENRIETTE TILANUS – Henriette, 23, was born in Nijmegen in the Netherlands, and graduated from the ArtEZ Institute of the Arts in Arnhem. Henriette’s collection is titled “Let the Dust Settle In”, and is inspired by the eccentric style of Edith Sitwell, using textile experiments such as embroidering on plastic and creating abstract flowers from found materials.

To find out more about the award and the finalists, and vote in the People’s Prize award, visit designaward.hm.com. Please click here to download the images and click here to view a short film on each designer’s presentation.