The Hyères Festival always gives pride of place to the winners of the previous edition. A way to highlight emerging talents a little more and to reinforce their price. It is also an opportunity to see them evolve. And, even if for this 2020 edition the conditions are not favorable to travel, the winners have all planned to make the trip.
Irish Róisín Pierce, winner of the Chanel Crafts Prize (inaugurated in 2019 and this year renamed the 19M Chanel Crafts Prize) and the Audience Prize, booked her ticket from Dublin, and the Austrian Christoph Rumpf, winner of the Première Vision Grand Jury Prize, has arrived from Vienna. As for the Spaniard Noelia Morales, who won the Swarovski Fashion Accessories Grand Prix, she traveled from Barcelona. All three present their latest projects in the gymnasium of Villa Noailles, as part of an exhibition organized by the scenographer Samuel Bégis which will continue until November 29, 2020. And so much the better, because this promotion has not passed. unnoticed.
Lingerie sets
Noelia Morales made a big splash last year. The 47-year-old Spaniard seduced the jury with pieces of lingerie that truly deserve the name of finery. Designed for women who have had a mastectomy following cancer, they come in the form of an eye patch, lace, embroidered or adorned with crystals and are more striking for their beauty than for their purpose.
For this 35th edition of the festival, she returns with a new collection that is expanded, but which is staying the course, in collaboration with several Chanel art houses, in particular the hatter Maison Michel and the embroiderer Montex. It has a corset belt, a voluminous feather collar or even a headgear between a turban, wig and hat, for women who suffer from the disease. “Do not want to lose their femininity”. “I hope to make people talk a little with this collection and also promote it in Spain with a launch in Barcelona. Thus, I will be able to capitalize on everything that the prize has enabled me to achieve ”, explains the designer.
Zero waste cutting
Another 2019 sensation, Róisín Pierce. The designer had imagined an all-white collection so that the eye would focus almost exclusively on her artisanal work: aerial overlays of English or crochet lace, smocking and more traditional embroidery. During the confinement, Róisín had plenty of time to perfect his technique and make special pieces, always more demanding in terms of know-how, exploring in particular zero waste cutting. She also collaborated with Chanel Métiers d’Art. “As I only work on my brand, I have the freedom to stay true to my design philosophy and take the time to experiment. It’s not always rosy and, financially, it’s complicated, but it’s worth it ”, she emphasizes. She will also soon present her collection in London through an installation and a film created by photographer Andrew Nuding.
In addition to organizing a parade during this festival, the winner of the Première Vision Grand Jury Prize, Christoph Rumpf, will be a member of the fashion jury. A heavy burden and an additional French experience for those who already, during the exceptional dinner bringing together creators organized at the Élysée in February, marveled at the tender asparagus served as a starter! “What I learned from my participation in the Festival is that we are not there to judge but to support, this is how I approach my role as a juror. But I admit that it makes me very funny to be alongside Jonathan Anderson who chairs this jury ”, he has fun.
He will unveil sixteen looks designed in the countryside during confinement, upcycled like last year. “In the coming months, I would like to come and settle in Paris, as was planned before the epidemic. I would love to develop my own brand, but of course I am worried about the economic crisis. At the same time, it forces you to slow down. Myself, I had to stop and it allowed me to see more clearly to design a more modest project », he explains. If they all want to see their various projects succeed, confinement has taught them one thing, patience.
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