About ITS Contest

Barbara Franchin

Fondazione ITS Director and ITS Contest founder

Barbara Franchin stands at the helm of the Fondazione ITS, steering both the ITS Contest and the ITS Arcademy - Museum of Art in Fashion – Italy’s first contemporary fashion museum.
Born and raised in the cosmopolitan city of Trieste, Italy, Barbara cultivated a singular and unrestricted perspective on creativity. This vision led her to found EVE in 2001, a pioneering creative agency driven by a dynamic team of young visionaries.

This initiative paved the way for the launch of the ITS Contest in 2002, a platform that drew emerging talents from top fashion design schools globally. Quickly earning critical acclaim, the contest captured the interest of media, influencers, intellectuals, and key figures in the international fashion landscape, establishing itself as one of the world’s most prestigious launchpads for emerging design talents. Transitioning from its original framework, EVE evolved into a cultural association in 2006 and into Fondazione ITS in 2022.

Driven by her love for art and culture, and committed to preserving and showcasing the raw creativity unearthed through the ITS Contest, Barbara has assembled an unparalleled collection encompassing 14,840 portfolios, 1,100 fashion pieces, 165 accessories, 120 pieces of jewelry, and more than 700 digital photography projects.

These are now contained within ITS Arcademy - Museum of Art in Fashion, a pioneering space combining an exhibition area, a creative archive, and an educational hub.
Barbara Franchin has been recognised for her contributions to the promotion of creativity, earning a spot on Elle Magazine's list of the 100 most influential women in fashion, inclusion in The Business of Fashion's BoF 500 list, and being named one of Forbes' 100 successful women in leadership and creativity.