EXCLUSIVE: Woolmark Prize Spotlights Finalists in Short Film Ahead of Paris Return
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
PARIS — Before the International Woolmark Prize reveals its 2023 winners on May 15 in Paris, the organization is spotlighting the year’s eight finalists in a short film being released Thursday.
Directed by Partel Oliva and choreographed by Josh Johnson, under the creative direction of Zak Kyes and the Zak Group, the “Dialogue” film celebrates conversations as a catalyst in the creative process, inspired by a 1972 performance by American visual artist Joan Jonas.
More from WWD
The artist found interesting the idea that her work “would be transformed by younger people” and that the wool organization had found places that echoed the long-gone empty outdoor lots where she had staged the original “Delay, Delay” performance.
“Years ago I would not have participated in a project like this,” said Jonas. “But I’ve since become very interested in how people interpret my work, how they might be influenced by it and how it might change the way they view their own work.”
Among other guests appearing in the film are actress Taylour Paige and hip-hop artist Loyle Carner, writer Naomi Shimada, French actress Sonia Ichti, Australian-born ballet dancer Samuel Pereira and a cadre of Marseille-based creatives.
In the film, they are first seen in the rocky seafront near Marseille, tracing geometric tracks or climbing rock formations alone or in small groups, to a dreamy score composed by British electronic producer and musician Loraine James. The camera cuts to Jonas, who is using hands or a brush to paint shapes that echo the movements of the other cast members, all wearing looks by the finalists’ competition designs.
“Wanting to continue our cross-cultural collaborations this year led us to Joan Jonas, who is not only an iconic performance artist who pushes creative boundaries, but allowed us to further exemplify our theme of ‘Dialogue’ and promote inter-generational conversations,” said The Woolmark Company’s chief executive officer John Roberts.
Up for the grand prize and the Karl Lagerfeld Award for Innovation, endowed respectively with 200,000 Australian dollars and 100,000 Australian dollars, are finalists Rhuigi Villaseñor, founder of Rhude and creative director of Bally; Jaehyung Lee, who is behind the South Korean brand Maxxij; Anthony Alvarez, founder of Bluemarble; Amalie Roege Hove of the Danish knitwear brand A. Roege Hove; Irish menswear designer Robyn Lynch; Marco Rambaldi from Italy; design duo Lucile Guilmard and Paolina Russo of the label Paolina Russo, and Adeju Thompson, founder of Lagos Space Programme.
An additional Woolmark Supply Chain Award will be presented to a trade partner for their contribution to driving wool supply chain innovation.
The May 15 final will also be the first time the Woolmark Prize returns to the French capital since 2017. It is an occasion that “salutes the original awards [begun in 1953 in Paris], which launched the careers of fashion icons Valentino Garavani, and then in 1954 famously awarded Karl Lagerfeld and Yves Saint Laurent as winners,” said Roberts.
Past winners of the prize include Azzedine Alaïa in 1985, and more recently, Gabriela Hearst, Richard Malone and Saul Nash while Bode took home the inaugural innovation prize in 2019.
Best of WWD
