| December 7, 2018
The designer of the Fashion Awards 2018 Swarovski crystal trophy is globally recognized architect Sir David Adjaye .
Sir David Adjaye, the principal architect and founder of Adjaye Associates, was selected by Swarovski and the British Fashion Council (BFE) to design this year’s crystallized trophy for the Fashion Awards 2018 in partnership with Swarovski.
The trophy is a symbolic takeaway of the evening, representing the unique and dynamic talents of those who receive it. Each year, a new designer is invited to put their own bespoke spin on it with past designers listed as Marc Newson CBE in 2016, followed by John Pawson in 2017.
Like those chosen before him, Adjaye is celebrated as a leading architect of his generation. Born in Tanzania to Ghanaian parents, his design influences range from African art forms and the civic life of cities to contemporary art, music and science. His ingenious use of materials and sculptural ability established him early on as an architect with an artist’s sensibility and vision.
Adjaye approached the Fashion Awards 2018 trophy as a study of form and material with a focus on geometry resulting in a six-sided column design with tapered triangular facets. Each of the trophy’s concave surfaces were crafted in Swarovski’s Wattens, Austria headquarters via innovative Wave Cut technology for a mystifying prismatic effect.
“Swarovski crystal was integral to the design as I was captivated by the optical effects that you can achieve through geometry creating refraction, distortion and reflection with the material,” noted Adjaye.
The trophy will be presented to each of the Fashion Awards 2018 winners on December 10 at Royal Albert Hall.
AND THE NOMINEES ARE
High-profile designers, models and business leaders are announced as the 2018 Fashion Awards nominees
The British Fashion Council has announced The Fashion Awards 2018 nominees in partnership with Swarovski, revealing the five brands or individuals shortlisted for each of the evening’s ten categories.
The Fashion Awards bring together the industry’s elite to celebrate the world’s most extraordinary fashion talent with a focus on creativity and innovation. Each award honors those pioneering individuals, brands and businesses whose imagination and unique vision has broken new ground globally over the past 12 months.
Categories this year are Accessories Designer of the Year, Brand of the Year, British Designer of the Year Menswear, British Designer of the Year Womenswear, British Emerging Talent Menswear, British Emerging Talent Womenswear, Business Leader, Designer of the Year, Model of the Year and Urban Luxe.
Special recognition awards will be announced before the ceremony and celebrated the night of. These include Outstanding Achievement, Isabella Blow Award for Fashion Creator and Swarovski Award for Positive Change.
The full list of nominees, available on the British Fashion Council Website, were selected by 2,000 members of The Fashion Awards voting body and capture the energy and diversity of the industry. Returning to the roster are winners from 2017 up for the same category including Model of the Year, Adwoa Aboah, Accessories Designer of the Year, Jonathan Anderson and Urban-Luxe brand Off-White. Fresh faces for 2018 include Designer of the Year nominees Clare Waight Keller for Givenchy, Kim Jones for Dior Homme and Pierpaolo Piccioli for Valentino.
A new addition to the ceremony this year, the NEW WAVE: Creatives, will recognize 100 of the most innovative and inspiring young trailblazers from around the world including image-makers, hair and makeup artists, set designers, creative directors, models, digital influencers and stylists.
This accolade speaks to The Fashion Awards purpose as a fundraiser for the British Fashion Council’s charitable initiatives, those of which promote excellence in British fashion and support the future pipeline of creative talent through education, business and mentoring programs.
Winners of the Fashion Awards will be announced on December 10th at the Royal Albert Hall in London with hosts Jack Whitehall, British actor, writer and comedian, and Alek Wek, South-Sudanese British model and activist.
