NEWS| Maia Bergman announced as H&M Design Award 2013 Finalist

After rave reviews from Fashion Scout’s Graduate Showcase, designer Maia Bergman adds to her already blooming collection of accolades which includes winning Vogue Italia’s Young Vision award, and now a finalist for H&M’s 2013 Design Award. 

The young designer who wowed audiences last season with her overtly girly aesthetic and detailed use of embellishment talks to H&M about her work and her inspirations from “90’s matchy-matchy” to artist and fashion designer Stephen Sprouse. 

This year’s H&M Design Award invited students from 19 major fashion schools in Europe where 24 talented students including Maia Bergman were brought together to  meet with Head of Design at H&M, Ann-Sofie Johansson. Talking about her simple silhouettes and seemingly random placement of colour, Maia’s work exudes an effortless sophistication that doesn't deny itself of playfulness or charm, which is something that makes her stand out in the competition.

The winner of the 2013 Design Award will be announced at Mercedes-Benz Stockholm Fashion Week at the end of this month, will receive a prize of €50,000, and have pieces from their collection developed to be sold at H&M stores during A/W 2013.

Find out more about the H&M Design Award.

By Vanessa Omoregie (@wewearblack)
Images from H&M and Asia Werbel

NEWS| Graduate Showcase designer Maia Bergman wins Vogue Italia award

Graduate Showcase designer, Maia Bergman has recently added to her already extensive list of accolades- Harper's Bazaar featuring her work on their September cover, featured in the Chinese edition of Vogue, and now this, winning Vogue Italia's Young Vision design award.

In partnership with online design community Muuse Fashion, Vogue Italia selected 10 finalists out of an original 300 to be voted by the public as winner of the 2012 Young Vision award. Out of the final 10, Central Saint Martins graduate, and VFS alum Maia Bergman was voted winner of the Community's Choice Award- an award Fashion Editor Sara Maino explains is voted for by the "international" online community, not just those reading Vogue Italia in its namesake country. 

More reason for VFS to be excited about the future of this young talent, and expect greater things for her yet.

Read the original announcement online at Vogue Italia, and follow Maia on Twitter @MaiaBergman.

GRADUATE SHOWCASE| Maia Bergman and May Tang

It’s day one at Vauxhall Fashion Scout, and up first is the Graduate Showcase, celebrating the work of eleven new graduates from across the UK. The exhibition showcases three looks from each designer, curated by Fashion156 Creative's, Guy Hipwell, with Central Saint Martins graduate Maia Bergman, and London College of Fashion's Mei Tang being the first look to fashion's future on the VFS blog ahead of Spring/ Summer.


First up, Argentinian Central Saint Martins grad Maia Bergman who graduated this May with a degree in Fashion Print. Bergman's graduate collection combines sheer fabrics, and vibrant, intricate beading in varying pastel hues.  Using a consistent sheer base, Bergman has created the effect of a playful print on each garment, by her aforementioned use of carefully placed beads; a testament to her background in Print and her skill as a designer.  

London College of Fashion graduate, May Tang's MA collection “Writhe In Parade” was inspired by skeletal deformities; responding to this, Tang altered the patterns of each garment very slightly, in order to create pieces that had variety yet maintain uniformity.  The nature of her concept inspired the dominant use of lace, which Tang reworked to resemble bone cell structures in accordance with her original theme.  Despite being a Womenswear collection, its structure is purposefully androgynous in order to mirror the unbiased nature of congenital spinal diseases.  

Text by Abigail Gurney-Read (@AbbyGurneyRead)

Images by Asia Werbel, and Alice Luker (second to last)