The Woolmark Company has announced the winners and runners up for this year’s Wool4School Hong Kong student design competition, selected by an esteemed panel of judges including leading Australian fashion designer Jonathan Ward; Xinao Group Representative Nicole Mak; and Business Development Manager of The Woolmark Company Daniel Chan.
“The submissions we received this year all excelled in realizing the full potential of wool to fulfil the 2020 theme of Flora & Fauna, once again proving that creativity is abound among the young generation,” said Daniel Chan.
2020 Wool4School Hong Kong winners and runners up are:
Junior
Winner: Ng Kei Yin – St. Catharine’s School for Girls
Second Place: Hui Kin Tung – St. Catharine’s School for Girls
Third Place: Chan Chung Yan Francisca – St. Rose of Lima’s College
Senior
Winner: Liang Yuk Ying – St. Catharine’s School for Girls
Second Place: Lee Pui Yu – St. Paul’s Co-educational College
Third Place: Cheung Wing Lam – St. Catharine’s School for Girls
School Category
Junior: St. Catharine’s School for Girls
Senior: Vocational Training Council (VTC) – HKDI Department of Fashion and Image Design Applied Learning
Junior winner Ng Kei Yin’s high-collar dark green, khaki and apricot wool sweater symbolises the distinguished coats of wolves but is also designed for easy spotting in the wild. Inspired by the graceful elusiveness of wolves and calling attention to their endangered status, the left sleeve adorns three, digitally printed badges depicting wolves’ habitats – forest, snow and plain fields, whilst the outer coat is reversible with the grey side representing the sheep and the opposing side portraying a wolf as depicted by the illustration.
“It is a cool concept to combine wool with the wolf: the pronunciations are similar yet their relationship is prey and predator,” said judge Nicole Mak. “Even her skilled illustration talent delighted the judges during the presentation.”
Senior winner Liang Yuk Ying impressed the judges with a Fall/Winter design that pays homage to mudskippers. Details lie in the neckline darts, frilled shoulder yoke pleats and tucked motifs that illustrate the creatures’ pectoral fin and are best worn with the bow-tie of the mudskippers’ ogling eyes. Frilled sleeves, a sequined pair of shorts and a waterproof skirt frame of Gabardine portray the mangroves and mudflats in which the slippery swimmers live. The hem of the green wool coat is laced with patterns of mangrove plants; and the blue frill of wool, blended silk and polyester stretches diagonally on the back from the right shoulder to the side hip as a representation of the mudskippers’ agile fins.
“The winning design concept ‘Periophthalmini living on Mangrove’ by Liang Yuk Ying fulfills the brief of fauna and flora with a very strong creative statement that is expressed extremely well through her mood board and design concepts that demonstrate an understanding and use of wool as a versatile fibre,” said judge Jonathan Ward.
Based on the theme of flora and fauna, students were tasked to design an original outfit made from a minimum 70% Merino wool that embraced creativity and versatility in the materials. The competition encourages students to use their imagination and find ways to introduce new and innovative concepts in fashion design.
Aside from a trophy and book vouchers, winning students will also receive prizes sponsored by Lenzing Group and Wacom, namely an invitation to attend a Woolmark workshop as well as a half-day experience at Lenzing Innovation Centre (AIC). The winning schools will receive Wacom Draw Pen Medium for their classroom.
First launched in 2012, Wool4School competition has received more than 100,000 student entries in Australia, Hong Kong, United Kingdom and Italy. By putting wool into the minds of future’s fashion designers, Wool4School encourages secondary students’ innovative thinking and creative design. Entrants learn the fundamentals of fashion design and explore the natural benefits, unique characteristics and versatility of Australian Merino wool in the competition.
