Photo: Courtesy LVMH
Each year, the LVMH Prize scours the globe for the next generation of influential fashion designers with the hopes of bolstering their business with a little LVMH shine. This year “over 1,900 candidates from all over the world applied,” reports Delphine Arnault, the executive vice president of Louis Vuitton and director of the Prize. “This success demonstrates the importance of the LVMH Prize internationally: many young designers have realized just how decisive this Prize is for their careers, as it helps to showcase and nurture the talents of tomorrow.”
The 2022 shortlist spans continents and ages, with the 20 semifinalists coming from Ghent, Lagos, Dublin, Tokyo, and beyond. The global nature of fashion resonates with Arnault, who looks to the successes of the 2021 winners—Nensi Dojaka took home the grand prize, KidSuper, Lukhanyo Mdingi, and Rui the Karl Lagerfeld special prize—as a sign for fashion’s next chapter. “The class of 2021 has shown great ability in approaching the new world: they all have e-commerce sites, are present on social media and embrace a way of creating and producing that takes into account the challenges of our industry,” she says. “The class of 2021 was also a beautiful symbol of diversity: Nensi was born and raised in Albania, Lukhanyo is South African, Rui comes from Hunan in China… Young designers don’t necessarily express themselves in one of the world’s fashion capitals such as Paris, London, New York or Milan.”
An in-person showroom will take place in Paris on March 4 and March 5, while the virtual showroom and voting online will continue. “I’m very excited that the experts”—including actress and LV ambassador Léa Seydoux and new expert Cindy Sherman—“who can attend will meet the semi-finalists in person and see their work,” says Arnault, “[and] we all hope that the 2022 Final will be held physically. It is very important for the semi-finalists to meet the Experts and they all confirm how inspiring these encounters are for their work.”
Until then, meet the 2022 LVMH Prize semifinalists below and stay tuned for the final, coming later this spring.
Airei, menswear brand designed by Drew Curry in Los Angeles, California, USA
Amesh, genderless brand designed by Amesh Wijesekera in Colombo, Sri Lanka
Ashlyn, womenswear brand designed by Ashlynn Park in New York, New York, USA
Bluemarble, menswear brand designed by Anthony Alvarez Graff in Paris, France
Chenpeng, genderless brand designed by Peng Chen in Shanghai, China
ERL, menswear, womenswear, and genderless brand desigend by Eli Russell Linnetz in Venice Beach, California, USA
Goomheo, menswear and genderless brand designed by Goom Heo in London, UK
KNWLS, womenswear brand designed by Charlotte Knowles and Alexandre Arsenault in London, UK
Maximilian, womenswear brand designed by Maximilian Davis in London, UK
Meryll Rogge, womenswear brand designed by Meryll Rogge in Ghent, Belgium
Niccolò Pasqualetti, genderless brand designed by Niccolò Pasqualetti in Tuscany, Italy
Palomo Spain, genderless brand designed by Alejandro Gomez Palomo in Córdoba, Spain
Paula Canovas del Vas, womenswear brand designed by Paula Canovas del Vas in London, UK
Róisín Pierce, womenswear brand designed by Róisín Pierce in Dublin, Ireland
Ryunosukeokazaki, genderless brand designed by Ryunosuke Okazaki in Tokyo, Japan
S.S. Daley, menswear brand designed by Steven Stokey-Daley in London, UK
Tokyo James, menswear brand designed by Iniye Tokyo James in Lagos, Nigeria
Weinsanto, womenswear brand designed by Victor Brunstein Weinsanto in Paris, France
Winnie NY, menswear brand designed by Idris Balogun in New York, New York, USA
Yueqi Qi, genderless brand designed by Yueqi Qi in Shanghai, China
Originally published in Vogue.com
