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Dive into the creations of the Design Academy class of 23/24

Learn more about the innovative designs of the participants and their creative approach to challenges of the fashion industry

April 3, 2024
Blog

The class of 23/24 of the VORN Design Academy culminated at the Berlin Fashion Week in February, where a showcase exhibition presented the creations developed throughout the 3 months training itinerary. The programme, sponsored by Zalando, carefully selected 10 young talents from a pool of 50 applicants across Europe and gave them the opportunity to participate in a residency where they were mentored by industry professionals. The curriculum covered various fashion innovation topics such as digital creation, digital sampling and the application of circular design principles. 

From investing in long-lasting materials and applying resource-conscious production processes to incorporating co-creation and size-adjustability concepts, the solutions developed by the 10 selected designers show creative ways to address the challenges of a more sustainable fashion industry. During the showcase exhibition, visitors could explore the designs of the finalists physically as well as in a virtual showroom.

Reused garments and folding techniques that avoid material waste and are adjustable to different sizes were the solutions developed by Julia Tabakov.

Harm Coordes, working on textile waste reduction, presents his pieces made of flexifoil leftovers from football jersey customisation.

The beauty of slow dying processes and a close and conscious connection with the materials showcased in Elodie’s piece.

Dorota Stepniak’s pieces are characterised by minimalism and clever solutions that influence style, comfort and size.

The usage of second-hand items or fashion waste as well as design for longevity and downcycling were the challenges tackled by Ildi David’s designs.

Isabel Toledo explores the use of recycled metal, one of the most long-lasting materials.

Salar Mousavi brings old memories to life with his patchwork items made out of second-hand children’s blankets.

Kseniya Dockhorn introduced 3D-knitted bags made from 100% recycled nylon yarn.

Parametric design was applied by Sarah Frede as a tool to plan the use of very tiny and uneven scraps and incorporate them to her pieces.

Florian Mathe’s blend of traditional craftsmanship with cutting-edge innovation.

We are proud to have fostered such amazing creations and facilitated a rich exchange of experiences. The call for applications for the class of 24/25 will be open in April (stay tuned!).

To wrap up this season, we invite you to learn more about the innovative solutions developed by 3 of the 10 finalists in these videos.

Elodie presents details of her slow dying process. She shares her learnings during the Design Academy and talks about the complexity of creating a more sustainable fashion.
Harm Coordes and Marte Hentschel, Co-CEO for VORN, comment on Harm’s creations made of flexifoil leftovers from football jersey customisation.
Salar Mousavi shares about his experience with the Design Academy workshops and how digital creation supported his creations come to life.

Want to dive deeper into the concept of the Design Academy and learn more about Zalando strategy with Corporate Citizenship? Listen to this episode of the 202030 Podcast where Zalando Corporate Citizenship Senior Manager Lara Gesche and VORN Co-CEO Marte Hentschel share the results from the Design Academy class of 23/24.