SDC International Design Competition 2014… and the winner is

On Tuesday I had the absolute pleasure in being on the judging panel for this year’s prestigious SDC (Society of Dyers and Colourists) International Design Competition to select the UK winner from the five regional finalists, with the winner going on to represent the UK in the global grand final, to be held in China later this year.

My fellow judges were esteemed Celia Joicey, Head of the Fashion & Textile Museum and Ciara Crossan, Senior designer for the Haddow Group. Judging took place at the Society of Chemical Industry (SCI) before heading to the Houses of Parliament for the awards ceremony.

Competition brief 
The competition brief was ‘To demonstrate the creative, imaginative and original use of colour in either fashion or textiles’

All entries were asked to show evidence of the following:

• colour as an integral component of the design process
• development of the designs, from concept to final product
• excellent presentation and clarity of ideas
• innovative approach to incorporating this year’s theme of ‘Material World?’ within the original design and final application.

As judges, we assigned marks for each of these fouri categories. It was great to meet each of the students and along with their boards and statements, they had the opportunity to discuss their project with us in more detail.  Then came the difficult decision of awarding marks and ultimately picking the winner who we felt best fulfilled the brief.

Meet the UK finalists
And here are the five finalists coming from all corners of the UK, who had won their regional heats.

SDC International Design Competition 2014 | UK Finalist | Heriot-Watt University Scotland | Anja Alexandersdottir – project entitled “Immersive light”

SDC International Design Competition 2014 | UK Finalist | University for the Creative Arts London | Claire Hunsinger – project entitled “Keeping warm”

SDC International Design Competition 2014 | UK Finalist | Huddersfield University North of England | Daniel Matthews – project entitled “Interwine Texture”

SDC International Design Competition 2014 | UK Finalists | Winchester School of Art West of England & South Wales | Anna Winkley – project entitled “Contaminated Beauty”

SDC International Design Competition 2014 | UK Finalist | Loughborough University Midlands | Hannah Tatnell – project entitled “Dark Natures”

SDC International Design Competition 2014 | Judges |L:R Celica Joicey, Karen Haller and Ciara Crossan

And the winner is…
The UK winner of the SDC International Design Competition 2014 is Daniel Matthews from Huddersfield University, North of England region.  Daniel will be heading off to China later this year to represent the UK in the global grand final. We have our fingers and toes crossed for him!

SDC International Design Competition 2014 | UK winner | Huddersfield University North of England | Daniel Matthews

SDC International Design Competition 2014 | UK finalists and the judges at the Houses of Parliament

SDC International Design Competition 2014 | Celebratory drinks at the Houses of Parliament

If you are interested in more details relating to the competition theme, this year’s theme was “Material World” to be included in the design and the written statement.

Imagination is much quicker than technology! Innovation, creativity and originality are at the forefront of the textile industry, and are what is required to keep it alive. Ideas will always come first and then the machinery will help aid the initial concept into final fabric.

Steve Jobs once said, “Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works.”

Competition aim
The aim of this brief is to create a design that is both usable and has a function. Living in a world where textiles surround us on a daily basis, it is important to push the boundaries of textile design in new directions for the future taking into consideration industry’s working methods and limitations.

It is particularly important the students are aware of the environmental impact of their designs. Understanding different fibres and their qualities will enhance this process. To think about how sustainable their choice of yarn is or any other processes that are used to create the finished design. In other words, they were to ask themselves the question:  how sustainable is your overall process?

The students needed to consider all aspects of their design and its use:

• What is your final product?  Will it be used to dress the body or to furnish the home?
• Think about colour, texture, pattern, weight and handle.
• Consider the context in which it will appear and why it is ultimately a good piece of design in terms of industry’s commercial value and sustainability.
• Where will it be sold?

They were asked to consider all aspects of their product, how it would be made and its ultimate use.

Originating competition and brief notes: www.sdc.org.uk/competition/idc2014
All images courtesy of: SDC and Mr Alex Douglas