ITS 2020 is where creativity belongs, the home to young talents from the world over where a new generation of designers will gather on 17 July 2020 in Trieste, Italy. Here we belong. This will the claim and the Earth we will show is not made of cities, borders and nations but of lands, seas, trees and forests.
“Here we Belong” is a way to evoke the idea of home. It can be our place of origin, or a place we stumbled upon later in our lives. It can also be a place we’ve never actually reached but longed for. It is not necessarily a physical place. Home can be a state of mind, or a group of people united by a common thinking or feeling. Home is the starting place of love, of hope and dreams. Our heart will call home wherever our dreams dwell.
Family is home. It provides a sense of belonging like branches on a tree that grow in all directions, while the roots are the same.
Earth is home and we cannot remain inactive, responsible creativity is the one and only direction we will take from now on: all of our decisions, all of our actions will be guided by this fundamental attitude. Every contestant will be required to embrace this approach with solutions and ideas.
During its 19-year history International Talent Support has grown to become the most highly recognized platform to showcase & support the strongest young talents on the planet. Most importantly it has created an ever-growing family supporting creativity like branches on a tree growing in different directions, yet nurtured by the same roots.
It has built and impressive Creative Archive, a unique collection tracing the history of fashion evolution. Many of the over 580 finalists were selected by top fashion brands, where they now hold key positions, or have successfully developed their own lines.
By building and fueling the Creative Archive, ITS has laid the foundations that will allow the opening in July 2021 of a global training ground for creativity open not only to professionals but to all curious experimenters, from the youngest to the oldest: ITS Arcademy has been the destination of our journey during all these years, our ubi consistam. We belong there, we feel comfortable with this idea and we can’t wait to open up the doors and let you all in.
The ITS Arcademy blossoms from the international experience of Barbara Franchin and her team. Through their passionate research in these last 19 years they have attracted in Trieste, Italy, the strongest emerging talents in the fields of fashion, accessories, jewellery design and artwork. By building and fueling the ITS Creative Archive – a unique archive of international relevance – ITS laid the foundations that allow the opening, in July 2021, of a global training ground for creativity. A formative – research space not just open to professionals but to all curious experimenters, from the youngest to the oldest.
The ITS Arcademy will combine the exhibit dimension with the educational one. The exhibit area will include the ITS Creative Archive and temporary exhibitions, offering a space for dialogue between the world of fashion and those of the arts, cinema and design. The educational part will be aimed at two different kinds of public: a popular one, with courses and workshops aimed at elementary, middle and high school students from all over Italy, visitors and the local community; and a professional one dedicated to insiders, where former ITS competitors will be able to return to Trieste as teachers, and where companies will be able to organize workshops, seminars and special projects.
ITS Arcademy is among the winners of the public competition announced by Regione Friuli Venezia Giulia devoted to Cultural and Creative Spaces, a joint initiative carried out by the regional government offices of Culture, Training and Productive Activities. The European policies regarding the 2021-2027 programming consider culture and creativity as tools of social cohesion and integrated urban development. In synergy with such goals the competition supports initiatives aimed at enhancing the value of the cultural heritage of Friuli Venezia Giulia, at promoting economic development and innovation, at creating suitable settings for new methods of permanent learning within formal and informal settings.
“We are now expanding the ITS seismographic nature: the talents we originally brought to Trieste will be returning as accomplished professionals to share the depths of their souls in a land that has always been, historically, a place for dialogue and exchange. New talents, new professionals will be allowed to blossom, nurturing the sensibility and receptiveness of this territory. The ITS Arcademy will open in 2021 and it will be for everyone, from the 5 to the 100-year old curious and creative human being.“
Barbara Franchin
Founder & Director ITS
Starting today the applications for our fashion, accessories, jewellery and artwork contests are open. The contests’ timeline is the following:
– January 31st – March 15th: applications online
– March 23rd: deadline for a hardcopy of your portfolio to reach the ITS headquarters
– End of April: communication of the selected finalists
– July 17th: ITS 2020 Finals in Trieste, Italy
Our partners allow our existence and most importantly, our support to the strongest creative minds on the planet, who will be offered the following prizes:
The ITS Responsible Fashion Award powered by Allianz will assign to a Fashion finalist a cash prize of €10,000 and a tutorship on responsible creativity.
The ITS Responsible Accessories Award powered by Allianz will assign to an Accessories or Jewellery finalist a cash prize of €10,000 and a tutorship on responsible creativity.
Fashion Revolution will organise responsible tailor made creativity mentorships for both winners, which will be delivered by the Fashion Open Studio team The OTB Award will grant €10,000 and the winner might be offered an internship in one of the brands of the group.
The Diesel Award will grant the winner a monetary prize of €10,000, plus a 6-month internship at Diesel HQ in Italy.
The ITS Fashion@Work by illy Award offered by Illy will grant €10,000 to the winner.
The ITS ARTWORK by Swatch Art Peace Hotel Award will offer the winner an immersive experience in Shanghai at the artists residency created by Swatch in 2011. For a period of 4 to 8 weeks, in 2021, the winner will be hosted in Shanghai by the Swatch Art Peace Hotel, in one of the eighteen workshops with private living space. The award includes flights to/from Shanghai, accommodation within the residency (including every-day breakfast service), with local support, reception, library and kitchen at disposal. Other artists will be in residence at the same time, making this experience even more enriching, interesting and fun.
The Lotto Sport Award will consist of a 3-month internship with Lotto Sport for the winner who will have the opportunity to directly follow and develop a sports-inspired capsule collection in Lotto’s style office.
The winner of the Tomorrow Entrepreneurial Creativity Award will have a space to showcase his/her collection at the Tomorrow Le Palais Showroom, Paris.
The CNMI – Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana Award will grant the winner a cash prize of €5,000.
The ITS Fondazione Ferragamo Award will offer the winner a reward of € 5.000,00 and the opportunity to carry out an internship in the Company’s Creative Department.
The Pitti Immagine Award will offer a 6-month mentorship by the Tutoring & Consulting Direction and the opportunity to showcase the collection at Pitti Uomo in January 2021 in Florence, or if a womenswear designer at Super in Milan, on February 2021. A Special Mention by Vogue Talents will be awarded to a fashion, accessories or jewellery finalist. The winner’s collection will be featured on the Vogue Talents website and in the Vogue Talents supplement to Vogue Italia.
ITS 2020 will be a place to call home. Home can be the beginning, and it can be the destination. Some of us have left home, others are still looking for it. Home is a place where our sense of belonging makes us return, or arrive. it makes us feel that Here, we belong.