Fashion Accessory Competition

The Costume Institute at The Metropolitan Museum of Art announces a unique Fashion Accessory Design Competition, in conjunction with the exhibition Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations (May 10–August 19, 2012).

The Costume Institute invites all current U.S. students enrolled in a fashion design program to participate

Inspired by Miguel Covarrubias’s “Impossible Interviews” for Vanity Fair in the 1930s, Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations celebrates the innovative affinities and achievements of Elsa Schiaparelli (1890–1973) and Miuccia Prada (born 1949) through fictive conversations between their visionary bodies of work. Schiaparelli, who was closely associated with the Surrealist art movement, created such iconic pieces as the shoe hat, the tear dress, and the insect necklace. Prada took over her family’s Milanbased business in 1978 and focuses on fashion and accessories that reflect the eclectic nature of Postmodernism. Both women are famed for their imaginative designs that combine fashion with art, whether via unconventional materials, witty prints, or trompe l’oeil.

This year’s contest will focus on accessories—a strength and place of great creativity for both Schiaparelli and Prada. We are asking students to design and present a fashion accessory that pushes both fashion and the definition of an accessory forward to the future. How will you design an accessory using unusual inspiration that might appear abstract to the fashion world? We welcome cross-disciplinary collaborations or group submissions.

PLEASE EMAIL YOUR INTENTION TO PARTICIPATE BY FEB 6, 2012 to

metcollegegroup@metmuseum.org

Winner will receive:

• Exhibition merchandise
• Private tour of the exhibition for a group <15 people
• Contest winner and all finalists will get one exhibition catalog
• Other prizes TBA

TO ENTER PLEASE SUMBIT:

Phase 1:

• A minimum of two 11×17 pages of visual research

• A minimum of two 11×17 pages of initial design ideas that clearly communicate the use of your visual research

• A minimum of one 11×17 final design with working drawings

• A minimum of one 11×17 components board

All entry components listed above must be documented (photographed, scanned or otherwise digitized) and submitted as a whole on a CD/DVD.

Please submit Phase 1 work by March 30 to:

Katherine Nemeth, Assistant College Marketing Coordinator

External Affairs

The Metropolitan Museum of Art

1000 Fifth Avenue

New York, NY 10028-0198

BASED ON PHASE 1 ENTRIES, FINALISTS WILL BE CHOSEN AND NOTIFIED BY MONDAY, APRIL 2. They will also be announced on the Met and College Group at the Met’s Facebook and Twitter accounts.

INSTRUCTIONS BELOW FOR PHASE 2 FINALISTS ONLY

• Present a Paper model to the highest of possible standard as close to the design selected in Phase 1.

• Present an ad campaign using your paper accessory that would sit comfortably within a fashion magazine or website. This could be a photographic campaign or a fashion film/animation.

Please submit Phase 2 work by April 30 to Katherine Nemeth at above address.

The winner will be announced and the finalists’ acessories with all supporting material will be presented in early May during the College Group at the Met’s evening event. Contact the Met College Group with all questions and good luck! metcollegegroup@metmuseum.org