Hyères Festival 2022 shines spotlight on reinterpreted materials

Hyères - The 37th edition of the Hyères Festival, in conjunction with the Première Vision show, highlighted an exciting and innovative approach to textiles through its winners and finalists.

The young generation will not have to sift through the old clothes (dead stocks or upcycling) of the previous generation forever. Especially since these bear the social and ecological traces of a system that is past its best. For the young designers who presented their collections as winners and finalists in the field of fashion and fashion accessories at this year's Festival de Hyères, "sustainability" in the traditional sense is no longer an option.

For Lora Sonney, for example, upcycling is the final act of a fashion system that is at the end of its life. The young designer has put all her energy into developing a new material, made from garden hoses. She cuts and heats them before flattening them and using the material to make bags, hats, a mini skirt, and a raincoat.

Finnish designer Jenny Hytönen won the Première Vision Grand Jury Prize and the 2022 Audience Prize for her BDSM-inspired collection. She reinterprets materials and garments (like a leather jacket) by attaching metal pins or embellishing a sheer mesh fabric with glass beads. Glenn Martens, the president of the 37th Festival of Hyères, told FashionUnited after the award ceremony: "Jenny Hytönen has designed a collection that combines creativity, know-how, ready-to-wear and personality - her work is complete”.

Regarding the innovation of materials, the work of another Finnish designer, Priss Niinikoski, is also to be commended. Thanks to the support of the European Flax and Hemp Confederation (CELC), a new partner of the festival, the young designer has used the fibers of flax (but also of paper, raffia and wool) as the basis for a new type of fabric. “I use a very old technique that is very similar to knitting. I really start with the combed linen fiber and turn it into a rope by hand," she explains. Her approach is still conceptual from a fashion point of view, but sets an example.

Combining the old and the new

Valentin Lessner received the 19M des Métiers d'Art award, the Mercedes Benz eco-friendly collection award and the respect of Maïda Gregori-Boina, the artistic director of the Hyères Festival. Valentin Lessner is a master of tailoring, inherited from a family tradition. He adds his own touch with recycled materials and creations (a pair of pants made from linen scraps, for example). His silhouettes are inspired by his native region, Bavaria, and a legendary character, the Perchta, who is visually similar to a human beast. This ability to link the old world with the new is also found in the work of Joshua Cannone, winner of the Accessories Grand Prize, who plunges us into the metaverse with his surprisingly oversized leather bags.

On the accessories side, Adèle Dendaletche also stood out. She makes moulds out of plexiglass which she dips into a bath of PT Flex, a resin that hardens and allows her to make her own soles, without being dependent on the minimum orders of manufacturers.

The winners of the 37th Hyères International Fashion and Photography Festival:

• Jenny Hytönen: Grand Prix du Jury Première Vision and the Audience Award 2022

• Valentin Lessner: Prix le 19M des Métiers d'Art and the Mercedes-Benz Sustainability Award

• Sini Saavala: Prix l'Atelier des Matieres

• Joshua Cannone: Grand Prix du Jury Accessories

• Lola Mossimo and Indra Eudaric: Prix Hermès for Accessories and the Audience Award

• Rala Choi: Grand Prix Du Jury for Photography and the Audience Award

• Adeline Care: Mention Speciale Du Jury Photographie

• Chiron Duong: Prix de la Photographie American Vintage

This article was originally published on FashionUnited.FR before being translated into English