Woolmark Prize 2020 announces panel of judges

The International Woolmark Prize, now in its eighth year, has announced a new lineup of judges for the upcoming ceremony taking place on 17 February during London Fashion Week.

The award celebrates fashion talents working with Merino wool and will see one overall winner receive 200,000 Australian dollars.

Judges for the 2020 show are: Tim Blanks, editor-at-Large at Business of Fashion; Hamish Bowles, international editor at Large, Vogue; Sinead Burke, educator and advocate; Edward Enninful, editor-in-chief at British Vogue, Kim Jones, artistic director at Dior Men; Takashi Murakami, artist and president of Kaikai Kiki Co., Ltd; Holli Rogers, CEO of Browns and chief brand officer at Farfetch; Anja Rubik, model and founder of sexedPL; and Shaway Yeh, founder of yehyehyeh and group style editorial director at Modern Media group.

“The International Woolmark Prize is an institution for the fashion industry, and I am thrilled to participate,” Kim Jones commented in a release. “The competition shines a light on diversity and innovation and I’m very happy to be a part of that.”

New prize announced in honour of Karl Lagerfeld

The 2020 International Woolmark Prize will also see the introduction of the inaugural Karl Lagerfeld Award for Innovation, a prize given in honour of the late iconic fashion designer and International Woolmark Prize alumnus. The award will be given to a finalist who “showcases outstanding creativity and innovation.” The award, which will be presented by Carine Roitfeld, editor-in-chief at CR Book, will see the winner receive 100,000 Australian dollars.

Roitfeld commented in a release: “What an honour to be the first person to award the Karl Lagerfeld Award for Innovation. Karl was always looking for new talent - a rare, encouraging force, instrumental in the development of many young designers. In today’s global fashion business, discovering, nurturing, and providing a platform of recognition for innovating creatives is absolutely crucial.”

The finalists for the 2020 International Woolmark Prize announced in October are A-Cold-Wall (UK), Blindness (Korea), Bode (US), Botter (the Netherlands), Feng Chen Wang, (UK/China), GmbH (Germany), Ludovic de Saint Sernin (France), Matthew Adams Dolan (US), Namacheko (Sweden), Richard Malone (Ireland/UK).

Finalists have focused particularly on traceability and adding transparency to their supply chains this year. To support them, the International Woolmark Prize has launched a partnership with Provenance, a platform that enables businesses to outline the origin, journey and impact behind products. Finalists have also been supported by Common Objective, a global information and sourcing network that enables fashion professionals to succeed in sustainable fashion business.

Photos courtesy of Woolmark