The Austrian Fashion Association, in collaboration with the federal and city authorities, proudly presented the winners of the Austrian Fashion Awards 2023, recognizing the finest talents in Austrian fashion design. This year’s Austrian Fashion Awards brought together esteemed members of the fashion community to celebrate Austrian creativity and to encourage designers in their pursuit of excellence and positive impact.
The esteemed awards, which include the Outstanding Artist Award for experimental fashion design by the Federal Ministry for Arts, Culture, Civil Service, and Sport (BMKÖS) and the Fashion Prize of the City of Vienna, offer a combined prize fund of up to EUR 20,000, making them among Austria’s most prestigious and highly endowed design accolades.
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All event and catwalk photos by @thomaslerch
Hosted by Adia Trischler, the award ceremony unveiled the recipients of this year’s honours. Simone Springer and Yuji Mizobuchi, co-founders of the label rosa mosa, were granted the Outstanding Artist Award for experimental fashion design by the BMKÖS. Mag.a Veronica Kaup-Hasler, City Councillor for Cultural Affairs and Science, presented Christoph Rumpf with the Fashion Prize of the City of Vienna.
rosa mosa
Photos: Katarina Šoškić – Styling: Rike Hemedinger – Hair & Make Up: Nico Jaritz
Christoph Rumpf
photos by © Kévin Drelon
Camille Boyer, Chairperson of the Austrian Fashion Association, expressed her excitement about this year’s winners and their commitment to driving positive change in the field and society as a whole. She emphasized that the winners exemplify the harmonious combination of creative excellence and sustainability.
In addition to honouring the winners of the Outstanding Artist Award by the BMKÖS and the Fashion Prize of the City of Vienna, the Austrian Fashion Association showcased selected works by designers who received support through their AFA support program or the MODE start-up scholarship from the BMKÖS in 2022. The featured designers included Christina Seewald, Christoph Rumpf, Dalia Hassan, Florentina Leitner, GÜÇ, HISU PARK, Jennifer Milleder, Florian Máthé, Julian Scarry, and Sara Kickmayer. Their collections were presented during a captivating runway show that reflected the core values of the Austrian Fashion Association, including diversity, inclusion, and the unequivocal rejection of racism, discrimination, sexism, and fascism.
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The models embraced their roles as individual personalities rather than mere clothes hangers, giving life to the showcased fashion and using it as a means to express their identities. In line with the association’s overarching philosophy, this event, like all its projects, placed people at the forefront, regardless of their origins, skin colour, gender identity, sexual orientation, or religious beliefs. Each model’s personal narrative and experiences took centre stage.
The presentation was visually enhanced by a campaign conceptualized and realized by artist and creative director Manuel Haring, while musician and DJ Paul Ebhart provided the musical ambience.
The selection of the award recipients was made by independent juries comprising renowned national and international experts from the fields of design, communication, and fashion.
The national jury panel determined the winner of the Outstanding Artist Award for experimental fashion design by the BMKÖS. The panel consisted of Lilli Hollein, General Director and Scientific Managing Director of the MAK Museum of Applied Arts Vienna, Klaus Mühlbauer, milliner and hat-maker and winner of the Outstanding Artist Award for experimental fashion design by the BMKÖS in 2022, and Michael Steingruber, RONDO Der Standard’s Lifestyle and Travel Editor.
Meanwhile, the recipient of the Fashion Prize of the City of Vienna 2023 was selected by an international jury panel comprised of Serge Carreira, Head of the Emerging Brands Initiative at La Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode in Paris; Barbara Franchin, President of the International Talent Support (ITS) Foundation and Artistic Director; Mariette Hoitink, Founder and CEO of HTNK Recruitment and Consultancy, Co-founder and Partner at House of Denim, Denim City, Jeanschool, Amsterdam Denim Days, Lichting, and X BANK; and Kerstin Weng, Head of Editorial Content at Vogue Germany.
