IFM attacks! 4 Alumni at the 37th edition of the Hyères Festival

Antonia Schreiter, Alix Habran Jensen, Axel Aurejac and Joshua Cannone, all four graduates of the Institut français de la Mode, are in the running for the 37th Hyères Festival - the first prize historically dedicated to young international fashion design. German designer Antonia and Franco-Danish designer Alix for the Fashion competition, French photographer Axel for the Photography competition and French designer Joshua for the Accessories competition, are getting ready to live their first Festival experience from October the 13th to the 17th.

ref : 4 IFM Students& Alumni

The fantastic four

For these four creative enthusiasts, the Festival is an opportunity to show prestigious juries who they are. Antonia, Alix, Axel and Joshua will present their work to Glenn Martens, president of the fashion jury, Pierre Debusschere, president of the photography jury and Aska Yamashita, president of the fashion accessories jury, as well as other big names in fashion. They all say they are eager to meet them and especially to create as many connections as possible. Antonia (IFM/MA Knitwear Design 2021), currently a designer at Louis Vuitton, has been dreaming of this Festival for a long time “It's both very exciting and very intimidating!” After stints at Mugler and Paco Rabanne, Alix Habran Jensen (IFM/MA Fashion Design 2018) will present her first collection "in line with his values." Now a solo rider, Alix is looking for a form of "validation" from industry professionals. For Axel Aurejac (IFM/Management 2019) applying to the Festival was a no-brainer as it "gives artists a relatively free hand." Meeting people from the fashion industry is obviously key, but they also get to meet people from the broader cultural world "people who don't have the same vision as me, being able to talk to them about my intention through my photos. It's a great opportunity to exhibit at the Villa Noailles". Joshua Cannone (IFM/MA Accessory Design 2022) applied thanks to the advice of Leyla Neri, Head of Master of Arts in Fashion Design at IFM. His final collection of bags took almost a year and a half of work, "I'm glad they can finally be exhibited and get the attention I hope they deserve."

Talent wanted!

Attention, compliments, criticism and applause!

3 dresses, 5 skirts, 9 tops, 1 suit jacket: Alix’s collection named « The Iris » recalls the flowers of the famous painting of Van Gogh printed on a tie. The collection is enriched with jewelry, scarves and even recycled plastic shoes created with the Brussels studio Minimeter.  "I'm proud of this collection. I didn't use any new fabrics, everything is from upcycling. Sustainability is the only term I would like to maintain in everything I do." The tie questions the relationship between femininity and power for Alix. His desire to deconstruct certain archetypes linked to femininity, whether floral motifs or clothing, was inspired by artists like Georgia O'Keefe or Suzanne Santoro.  

15 photos: Axel has chosen to present a selection of images of people from behind, taken during his various trips to Ghana, Togo, or Jordan, which leave room for the public's imagination. Behind each neck or shoulder, a landscape and a social context emerge, questioning his place as a photographer. "When I started doing fashion photography, I used the same framing techniques I used for documentary photography.” Nikon FM2, Contax 645 and a few digital images, Axel moves from one camera to another, from a fashion project in Paris to a travel project, refusing any label and preferring to develop a global universe of photographer and art director. "In my photos, I seek a focus on color and materials. I don't like fancy pictures, I prefer simplicity and sincerity rather than opulence or too much work. That's what I want to convey through my photos.”

7 bags: Joshua's unisex collection is the result of his industrial design background and his year at IFM. Entitled "Static", the collection plays on hidden meanings. The young designer who has spent half of his life in New York City explains that in American slang “static" can also mean "to be in conflict or to hold a grudge against someone." Mainly made of leather, his bags are disturbing and interrogating, especially their shape, like the "dummy bag" whose vague human appearance is inspired by the bags used in combat sports. Or the "rat bottle" which, declined in colors of Haribo dragibus, is more sympathetic than all the New York or Parisian rats combined. As for the "body bag", an ironic nod to the body bag, it symbolizes Joshua's ability to aestheticize fears. "People either love it or are very intrigued. The reaction I hear most often is "what the hell is this?"

8 looks: specializing in knitwear, Antonia presents a unisex collection called "You can come as you are." In her expressive silhouettes, she invites everyone to make a piece their own: a cap, a sweater, a skirt...and especially to play with colors, a crucial part of her art. "I paint and draw a lot. I try to recreate these paintings in my work with the yarns and with the scraps I have left. I also paint the stitches to show the transition between colors, kind of like with watercolor. I always mix colors." Knitwear fascinates her both as a traditional technique and because it represents a wonderful playground for innovation. "I'm interested in decontextualizing knitwear or crochet, for example, and making outerwear, sportswear, coats..."

Luxury and enthusiasts

The days of the Festival without subsidies are long gone. The luxury groups are all present as it is a special place for designers to express their creativity in a different way. Chanel opens the doors of the Métiers d’art to the finalists of the Fashion competition since 2019. Alix was able to work with the Maison Lognon "When I arrived with my tie panels, I wondered what they would think! Maison Loigon received me with great curiosity, a real desire to adapt to my raw material and to understand my creative process." He had never tried pleating techniques before, but by working with the team pleating after pleating, he was able to create two skirts and two tops using the Fortuny technique and the petit accordion technique. Antonia explored with curiosity the Ateliers de Verneuil, specialists in leather goods. The colorful result, true to Antonia's inspirations, is an elegant assembly of small leather goods including a water bottle holder. "It was a very fun collaboration. I brought my aesthetic, my colors and some of my techniques into the very different world of leather goods. I really enjoyed the experience and I hope they do too!" As for the Accessories Award finalists, they discovered the Hermès workshops and created belts, after the jewelry theme in 2020 and the glove theme in 2021. Joshua took the equestrian universe so dear to Hermès and diverted it to the American style with its cowboy "gun holster" aspect and added his humor by hiding a riding crop "closer to a fashion accessory with a slightly kinky or strangely fetishistic side..." Finally, for the first time in the history of the Festival, Bottega Veneta (Kering) will offer the winner of the Photography Grand Prize the opportunity to collaborate on a campaign for the House. Matthieu Blazy, the artistic director, sits on the jury alongside photographer Carlijn Jacobs, whom Axel has assisted in the past.

Hyères and tomorrow

On the eve of each of their fashion shows, Alix sums up "the greatest prize of the Hyères Festival is being able to gather a variety of views and opinions from the Jury. It's an immense privilege." Congratulations again and good luck to Alumni Antonia, Alix, Axel and Joshua!

Follow the IFM Alumni finalists on @villanoailles and see you on Sunday October 16th to know the names of the winners of the numerous prizes of the Festival de Hyères!

translated by Juliet Dyer