The LVMH Prize has either led to the discovery of or improved the careers of many of today’s top designers. This year 22 international designers are among the semifinalists for the LVMH Prize.
“When we launched the Prize, the idea was to help highlight tomorrow’s talents,” shared Delphine Arnault, CEO of Christian Dior. “After the last 10 years, it has enabled hundreds, if not thousands of young designers to develop their creativity and careers.”
Compared to last year’s 1,900 candidates, there were almost 2,400 this year, according to Arnault. Three designers with a focus on menswear, eight designers with a focus on womenswear, and 11 designers who present their work as either a combination of menswear and genderless or genderless only are among the semi-finalists this year. They come from countries all over the world, including Ukraine, Brazil, Estonia, and Jamaica. In her own words “All the semi-finalists are anchored in today’s world.” Adding, “The increasing amount of genderless collections is a major trend, especially for the young generation.” She went on to say that the semi-finalist round is a great moment “for us and for all the experts to consider our business in terms of creation, production, or retail, and help us challenge the boundaries of innovation and creativity.”
Former winners include Shayne Oliver of Hood By Air who got a special prize in 2014, as did Jacquemus the next year; Grace Wales Bonner won the main prize in 2016, as did Marine Serre the following year, and Nensi Dojaka in 2021; and acclaimed performers Colm Dillane of KidSuper, Peter Do, Chopova Lowena, and Hed Mayner have also gone through the course.
The Award has changed during the previous few years, with the pandemic mostly responsible for those changes. For instance, instead of selecting a winner in 2020, it awarded all eight finalists, and in 2021 it opened up online voting to the general public.
In addition to specialists like Law Roach and Gabriella Karefa-Johnson, the public will be able to view the Prize’s online show this year and vote for their favorite semi-finalists in addition to viewing the designers.
On March 2 and 3, there will be a physical showroom in Paris. Online voting will be open to the public from March 1 through March 5. These votes will be added to the expert jurys’ votes.
The winner of the Karl Lagerfeld Award will receive 150,000 euros and a year of mentoring, while the winner of the LVMH Prize will receive 300,000 euros and a year of mentoring from a team within the luxury conglomerate.
Meet the 2023 LVMH Prize semi-finalists:
Aaron Esh, menswear brand designed by Aaron Esh from the United Kingdom.
Anne Isabella, womenswear brand designed by Anne Isabella Rasmussen from France.
Bettter, womenswear brand designed by Julie Pelipas from Ukraine.
Bloke, genderless brand designed by Faith Oluwajimi from Nigeria.
Burc Akyol, genderless brand designed by Burc Akyol from France.
Charlie Constantinou, menswear and genderless brand designed by Charlie Constantinou from the United Kingdom.
Diotima, womenswear brand designed by Rachel Scott from Jamaica.
Joao Maraschin, womenswear brand designed by Joao Maraschin from Brazil.
Johanna Parv, womenswear brand designed by Johanna Parv from Estonia.
Juntae Kim, genderless brand designed by Juntae Kim from South Korea.
Karu, menswear brand designed by Kartik Kumra from India.
Kusikohc, genderless brand designed by Cho Giseok from South Korea.
Louis Shengtao Chen, womenswear brand designed by Louis Shengtao Chen from South Korea.
Luar, womenswear, menswear, and genderless brand designed by Raul Lopez from the United States.
Magliano, menswear and genderless brand designed by Luca Magliano from Italy.
Marrknull, menswear brand designed by Wei Wang Tian Shi from China.
Namesake, menswear brand designed by Steve Hsieh, Michael Hsieh, and Richard Hsieh from Taiwan.
Paolina Russo, womenswear brand designed by Paolina Russo and Lucile Guilmard from Canada.
Quira, womenswear brand designed by Veronica Leoni from Italy.
Setchu, genderless brand designed by Satoshi Kuwata from Japan.
Stinarand, genderless brand designed by Stina Randestad from Sweden.
Wataru Tominaga, genderless brand designed by Wataru Tominaga from Japan.
