Star Creation Competition Has Its Top 12

Singapore makes strong showing in final 12, who will now bring their designs to life in the final leg of the competition

Singapore, April 5, 2011 - After over a month of intense deliberation, the judges of Star Creation, the Asia-wide fashion design competition, have revealed which 12 young Asian designers will face off on the runway on May 11.

They were chosen from 144 entries from all over the region – close to double the number of entries received last year. The 12 were chosen for their creativity, originality and commercial viability in interpreting the theme Internationally Asian. 

Singapore made a strong showing, with three securing spots. Also making the cut are two finalists each from China and Thailand. The remaining five come from Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Philippines and Vietnam. The full list of finalists is appended below.

Star Creation judge David Wang, who is also Chairman of the Designers and Retailers Group, Textile and Fashion Federation (Singapore), said deciding on the 12 was tough because of the high quality of submissions received.

"All the participants delivered a good balance of originality and commercial viability, and there were some extremely creative interpretations of this year's theme – Internationally Asian. We also saw some amazing work coming out of countries that have made the finals for the first time. I'm really looking forward to seeing their sketches come to life on the runway. I'm sure it is going to be a tough fight for the top spots," he added.

The competition was open to aspiring designers between 16 and 35 years old who are Asian citizens and do not have more than two years in the fashion industry. They had to submit six original and previously unreleased designs.

The judging panel also included Colin McDowell, Creative Director of the Audi Fashion Festival, and Desmond Yang, owner and designer of fashion label Abyzz. They will be joined by four more surprise judges at the May 11 finals, to be held at the Audi gala event at the Tent@Orchard at Ngee Ann City's Civic Plaza.

The three competition winners will each get S$10,000 cash prize from Audi Singapore as well as a one-year work attachment with leading fashion retailer, F J Benjamin, complete with the opportunity to launch a capsule collection at Star Creation 2012.

Of the three winners, one will also be picked by Audi Singapore for a special award - the Audi Young Designer Award (AYDA) in collaboration with Harpers Bazaar. This will be given to the one winner whose design best embodies the Audi design spirit of innovation, technology and progression.

For this, the judges will be looking for the innovative and visionary qualities in that piece, in keeping with Audi's design philosophy. The AYDA recipient will get an additional S$10,000 cash prize.

Mr Reinhold Carl, managing director of Audi Singapore, said: "As a leader in automotive design, Audi supports emerging Asian talent in their journey to become the next Alexandra Wang. We hope to see our Audi Young Designers Award winners debuting their collection on Audi Fashion Festival runway in the coming years. We are proud to be able to play our part in helping the region nuture and secure its fashion future."

The designs of both the finalists and winners will be showcased to industry players, fashion experts and their peers on May 16. At that event, winners of Star Creation 2010 will also launch their personal capsule collections, which they have been developing over the last year.

Star Creation, which is organised by the Textile and Fashion Federation Singapore (TaFf), is part of the Asia Fashion Exchange (AFX), and aims to uncover new local and Asian talents and groom them into becoming tomorrow's fashion stars. The event, now into its second year, ultimately aims to develop the long-term sustainability of the region's fashion industry by building capability and profiling local talent on an international platform, here in Singapore.

The Asia Fashion Exchange made its debut in 2010 as a unified platform involving the private sector and the government, namely The Singapore Tourism Board, Spring Singapore and IE Singapore – as well as the Textile and Fashion Federation of Singapore - to promote Singapore as a fashion hub covering all aspects of the industry, from consumption to trade exchange and business collaborations, as well as talent development and education.

Previously, the different sectors had worked independently of each other to produce events at different times of the year. With AFX, everything and everyone comes together during one part of the calendar to create a focused and concerted fashion buzz. This year, AFX will take place from May 11 to May 22, 2011.

The finalists at a glance:

Chen Zhi Gang, 28, China
The story that inspired Zhi Gang's collection, We're Inseparable, is a sad one. The student in China's Raffles Design Institute had to help a close friend deal with having been sexually abused, and it left a deep impression. The collection aims at capturing two different states – a sexy woman being undressed, and the idea of being safely shielded by a man and his coat. He also hopes to convey a sense of the 'now' - how, in an instant, things change.

Zhang Zhe, 21, China
Zhang Zhe, a student with Shanghai's Raffles Design Institute, was bitten by the fashion bug young – she used to create chic outfits for her Barbie dolls as a child. Her collection, Recollect Jazz, is an Asian interpretation of the roots of jazz, which many associate with 19th Century African slave dances. She draws heavily on the colour black, and the detailing is inspired by ropes and chains.

Anindya Intan, 22, Indonesia
Anindya, a student of the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (Singapore), discovered her love for drawing as a toddler. Her collection, Scouts Honour, is based on her teenage years as a scout, when she saw characteristics it encouraged - a high degree of self-reliance, initiative, courage, helpfulness, integrity, sportsmanship and respect for the rights of others, as well as for nature – as very similar to typical Asian traits. She hopes to be able to capture that similarity through her collection.

Hiroyuki Watanabe, 24, Japan
Hiroyuki is a freelance fashion designer who studied at the Hiroshima school of fashion – the Hiroshima Fashion Speciality College. His collection, Modern Folk Costume, was sparked by a long-time interest in Asian ethnic costumes from all over the world. In his collection, he ventured to offer women the opportunity to delve into the ethnic, yet look modern and chic.

Tiang Boon Tieon, 27, Malaysia
Boon Tieon inspiration to go into fashion design came from an unusual source - comic books. As a boy, the Raffles Design Institute (Singapore) student used to spend hours trying to draw the costumes in them. His collection, Along, is inspired by the humble handbag, which has become so much more than just a functional accessory and can say a lot about the person carrying it. In an attempt to capture that shift in mindset, he has deconstructed details in handbags and incorporated them into his outfits. The silhouette is loose-fitting to capture a sense of escapism, and the use of light, monotone materials lend the outfits a modern touch.

Mike August Yapching, 23, Phillippines
Mike, a student University of San Carlos (Philippines), grew up watching his grandmother and aunt make beautiful clothes for a living, and was inspired by the happiness they were able to give their customers. He knew, even then, that he wanted to be able to stir that same sentiment. His collection, Spiral in Motion, symbolises unity, or bayanihan in Filipino, and represents both the coming together of Asia as a community, as well as the cyclical nature of life.

Cheryl Tan, 21, Singapore
Cheryl is a student at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (Singapore). Her collection is themed Roadworks, and is inspired by the notoriously busy roads of Asia, constantly pounded by vehicles, pedestrians, bicycles and even animals. Each day, one has to navigate a heady mix of massive jams, overcrowded lanes and confusing highways. A street could take on a parade on one day, and turn into a muddy river the next. Cheryl envisions her collection as an Asian city in its own right, complete with road-like weaves and straps, unexpected seams and tunnelled textures.

Neo Ben Jie Benjamin, 20, Singapore
Benjamin, the competition's youngest finalist and a student at the Nanyang Academy of Fine Arts (Singapore), caught the judges' eye with Blooming Power. He based his designs on the lotus flower, to which he compares Asia – it is something humble that has grown out of the mud and blossomed into a body of power and beauty. Now, he says, is Asia's time. What he hopes will come through in his collection is structure, vibrancy, volume, colour and a sense of the whimsical. The layered look, while somewhat conservative, is modern.

Tsai Ming Hung, 28, Singapore (PR)
Ming Hung, a fashion design graduate from the University of Northumbria who has lived in Singapore 10 years. His collection, Internationally Asian, attempts to infuse modern menswear with ancient Asian design philosophies, and incorporate Asia's rich cultural legacy though in a wearable way. Boundaries are broken as East and West combine to create something completely unique.

Maythar Thadavi, 34, Thailand
Maythar, known as Milo to most, is a final year student at Thailand's Chanapatana International Design Institute who is passionate about fashion as he is about photography. His collection, The Field of Love, was inspired by a recent trip to Sapa, Vietnam. He struck by the views of terraced rice fields being lovingly tended by rice farmers and the respect they demonstrated for the environment they were in. Milo borrowed from the scene the lines and curves he used to soften the overall look of his designs, and chose to use natural, environmentally-friendly fabrics.

Karn Karnjanamai, 25, Thailand
Sometimes people get so used to things and people they see every day, that they stop really looking at them. That sentiment is what inspired Karn, a student in Thailand's Bunka Fashion Academy, to come up with Jabkang - The Laborer Culture. The collection casts the spotlight on construction workers, who are depended on everywhere in Asia to bring buildings to life. It draws on functional details like the way they tie long-sleeved shirts around their heads and tuck their pants into their boots and gives them a stylish twist.

Ngo Quynh Phuong, 25, Vietnam
For Phuong, a student at Vietnam's Mod-art International, fashion was a perfect way to pursue her interest in both drawing as well as creating things. Her collection, Cocoon, draws on the mystery that surrounds a cocoon prior to chrysalis. One cannot start to imagine what beauty will surface from it someday. The collection symbolizes that transformation and evolutions of Asia, and the region stepping out of its cocoon and into new beginnings.

For more information about Star Creation 2011 or to arrange for interviews with this year's finalists, please contact:

Word of Art

Arti Mulchand
Hp: 90666152
Arti@word-of-art.biz

Pamela Magdelene
Hp: 81803776
Pamela@word-of-art.biz

Eunice Lim
Hp: 96903390
Eunice@word-of-art.biz

Textile and Fashion Federation (Singapore)
The Textile and Fashion Federation (TaFf) was formed through a collation of the textile and garment associations in 1981. Singapore's textile and garment industry has since then transformed from a manufacturing base to be a regional fashion, marketing and sourcing hub. TaFf takes an active role in nurturing the next generation of talents, facilitate marketing and exportation of textiles and apparels to the world, promote the betterment of business practices through the adoption of advanced technology. We encourage participation in research, development, innovation and other enhancement activity or social projects, which add value to the industry. For more information, please visit www.taff.org.sg

F J Benjamin (Singapore) Pte Ltd
F J Benjamin (Singapore) is an industry leader in brand building and management and in developing retail and distribution networks for international luxury and lifestyle brands across Asia. F J Benjamin has offices in eight cities: Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Taipei, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Jakarta, Sydney and New York. The company represents over 20 brands and operates over 170 retail stores.

Audi Singapore
Audi has enjoyed a long and enduring partnership with the world of fashion and design, having collaborated with luminaries like Karl Lagerfeld and Miuccia Prada. It is also a great supporter of fashion festivals around the world including the Joburg Fashion Week, Berlin Fashion Week, the Singapore Fashion Festival and the Audi Fashion Festival. Just like the world's top fashion brands,

Audi cars are synonymous with exquisite design and quality craftsmanship which, together with innovative technology, make them the natural choice for those who want a premium automobile that also delivers high functionality and efficiency.

Asia Fashion Exchange
Asia Fashion Exchange (AFX) is an initiative aimed at developing the long-term sustainability of Singapore's fashion industry by building capability and profiling local talent on an international platform here in Asia. It is a joint effort by International Enterprise (IE) Singapore, SPRING Singapore (SPRING) and the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), with the strong support of local stakeholders, to establish Singapore's standing as Asia's fashion gateway. AFX includes events for both trade professionals as well as consumers, featuring Blueprint, a trade show designed to be an international platform based in Asia; Asia Fashion Summit, a business networking conference for industry professionals; Audi Fashion Festival, a showcase of world-class collections by top international designers and labels; and Star Creation, a fashion design competition to spot budding talent.