Womenswear designer macgraw and menswear designer Exinfinitas were the winners of the 16/17 International Woolmark Prize (IWP) Australia and New Zealand regional final.
A top panel of judges that included Jason Wu - artistic director at Hugo Boss, Damian Burke – senior national buyer men’s tailored and luxury clothing and fashion designer Richard Nicoll selected the winners at an awards event in Sydney.
“The level of talent was high,” explains Wu. “All of the designers showed a great balance of creativity and commercialisation, which is integral today.”
Exinfinitas designer Lukas Vincent fused surf culture with tailoring in an innovative way, using wool in different weights and textures to offer a modern take on menswear.
Macgraw duo – Beth and Tessa MacGraw showed a two-piece look made up of a wool overcoat with hand embroidered Merino wool flowers, and a wool dress. Over the next six months winning designers will be required to develop a capsule collection in Merino wool, to be showcased at one of two events in London and Paris in January 2017. New Zealand designers in the competition included Georgia Alice, Harman Grubisa and Lucilla Gray.
CAPTION: From left to right: A model in Exinfinitas, Exinfinitas’ Lucas Vincent, Beth and Tessa MacGraw and a model in Macgraw.
PHOTO CREDIT: harpersbazaar.com.au
