Carnival-like creation wins wearable art student prize
Saturday 27 August 2011, 2:52PM
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A “dreamlike” creation by third year fashion design student Sophie Littin has triumphed over international entries to win the student design award at this year’s Brancott Estate World of WearableArt Awards.
The awards, which celebrate the best in creative design from around the world, were presented at a star-studded ceremony in Wellington tonight (Friday).
It is the second consecutive year that a student from Massey University’s College of Creative Arts has been awarded the Shell-sponsored Student Design Award worth $5000, following Luka Mues’ success in the same category last year.
Ms Littin’s entry titled The Greatest Show, and made using wood, paint, fabric and even a converted birdcage, depicts a mysteriously dreamlike lady unashamedly accompanied by a freak show.
It was awarded top prize ahead of multiple student entries from China, India and the UK.
Her entry, earned another $2500, when it was judged runner-up in the Tourism New Zealand Avant Garde Section of the annual Awards extravaganza.
WOW competition director Heather Palmer described this section of the awards as “where art and fashion collide.
These designs are revolutionary, extravagant and extrovert. The shapes of this year’s designs are beautiful and eclectic, with designs including material such as; bird cages; aluminium tubing; and even 271 Barbie dolls.”
Massey fashion design student Katie Collier won $2500 for being runner up in the CentrePort Illumination Illusion section for her artistically macabre creation Exquisite Corpse.
Fashion design lecturer Sue Prescott was given an honourable mention for her entry Everyday Eros.
Ms Littin, like Mr Mues before her, has taken up scholarship to study for a semester at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco as part of a student exchange programme.
The exchange scholarship, which has been funded by the charitable arm of global telecommunications company AT&T provides her with another $2500, a place at the academy and her entry to the Wearable Art Awards.
A student from the San Francisco University will spend a semester at Massey in Wellington to complete the exchange.