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Supima Design Competition Lands at Lincoln Center During New York Fashion Week
06/13/2011
FIT, PRATT, RISD, SCAD STUDENTS
DESIGN FOR THE RUNWAY FOR CASH PRIZE
New York (June 13th, 2011) – Supima, the
non-profit brand that promotes 100% U.S. grown Pima cotton for the apparel and
home fashion industries, is celebrating its 100th anniversary with
the fourth annual Supima Design Competition, debuting for the first time at
Lincoln Center during New York Fashion Week.
This year, Supima has teamed up the leading
design schools in the U.S. including Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT),
Pratt Institute, Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) and Savannah College of
Art and Design (SCAD). Each school nominated two graduating seniors to be
finalists in the Supima Design Competition. Finalists include Amy Bittner (FIT), Connie
Weng (RISD), Dara Rosen (Pratt). Jusil Carol (FIT), Lorena Cuevas (SCAD),
Marlow Larson (SCAD), MaRu Jung (Pratt) and Rachel Pullman (RISD).
Each finalist received Supima fabric with
the simple instructions to produce a collection of five evening-wear looks to
walk down the runway in September. There will be a total of 40 looks. The eight
finalists were chosen from a total of 300 graduating seniors among all four
schools.
“We are very excited that we will be able
to showcase these talented students’ designs during New York Fashion Week to
the world's top press while showcasing the strengths of Supima cotton” explains
VP of Marketing, Buxton Midyette. “We
are also thrilled to be supporting the emerging talent of America’s top design
schools.”
In order to determine a winner, Supima has
enlisted a panel of illustrious judges from the fashion community who will review
each finalist’s collection. Judges
include Alexandra Wilkis-Wilson (founder
of Gilt Groupe), Charlotte Ronson
(fashion designer/DJ), Coco Rocha
(model), Kevin Harter (vice
president of men’s fashion for Bloomingdale’s) and Nicole Miller (fashion designer). The winner will be announced at
the fashion show where they will receive a prize of $10,000 to help them advance
their fashion career.
Supima has also curated an advisory
committee of some of the industry’s finest people including Adriano
Goldschmied, Allison Aston, Annabel Tollman, Arden Wohl,
Betsy Hilfiger, Christina Neault, Claudio
Del Vecchio, Cynthia Rowley, Edward Jowdy, Genevieve Jones, , Jonathan Saven, Marcia
Patmos, Marylou Luther, Nanette Lepore, Pan Philippou, Rem D. Koolhaas Jr., Samuel
Ku, Sergio Guadarrama, Shin Odake, Susan Shin, Teri Agins, and Timo Weiland.
As part of the Design Competition program, Supima
has made financial contributions to each of the participating design schools. Additionally,
Supima is donating 2,000 yards of fabric for student’s use and is participating
in the design curriculum by teaching classes on cotton at each school.
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About
Supima
Supima is America’s authentic luxury cotton: The
Supima brand designates a special variety of Pima cotton grown only in the
Western U.S. and sought the world over by designers and retailers who prize its
softness, strength, and brilliant color. To learn more about Supima’s unique
properties visit www.supimacollection.com