Saul Nash takes home prestigious International Woolmark Prize 2022
Saul Nash accepting his award. Source: The Woolmark Company
by Meg Pirie
Last week, London-based designer Saul Nash was announced the winner of the 2022 International Woolmark Prize at an event held in London. This year’s theme celebrated the art of play, and the immersive showroom was rooted in inspiration from one of the twentieth century’s most critically acclaimed sculptors, Isama Noguchi, which showcased the seven finalist’s collections.
An expert jury presided over the finalist’s collections including Carine Roitfeld, Edward Enninful OBE, Naomi Campbell, Riccardo Tisci and Tim Blanks to name but a few. Each six-look merino wool collection celebrated experimentation, design and responsible business practices as well as innovation focused on a sustainable fashion future.
Riccardo Tisci said, ‘Everyone did a great job and could have been a winner. But what Saul did, coming from a ballet background to replace lycra with wool was really incredible.’
Praised for his contemporary use of merino wool, Nash bridged the gap between activewear and more formal requirements, allowing the designer to expose the benefits of merino wool by developing materials possessing an enhanced quality without compromising on their unique DNA. This challenged any preconceived ideas surrounding activewear and with it the notion of what knitwear should be.
Merino wool has unique credentials in that it is particularly fine with a silky soft and luxurious feel, it’s also moisture-wicking making it a perfect trans-seasonal fibre, as well as something which could replace lycra in the activewear scene. At the end of the lifecycle stage, wool is renowned for being biodegradable and does not contribute to the microplastic pollution we are faced with today. This is perhaps what makes this fibre so compelling, when sustainability is such a fundamental driver at present.
‘Words cannot describe what this means to me,’ said Nash after the announcement. ‘In such a short space of time I am so grateful for what I have gained in the past eight months.’
As well as the life-changing sum of AU$200,000, the prize offered Nash unparalleled access to International Woolmark Prize partners, manufacturers and mentors across the supply chain who have supported the designers’ product development, research, business and sustainability strategies as well as future commercial opportunities.
Fashion Roundtable Board Member and Head of Fashion MA at the Royal College of Art, Zowie Broach, remembers when Nash was a student at RCA,
‘Saul is more than a linear designer. Saul lives in a world where he sees, believes, cries and of course dances. This is more a- spiralling about how he can offer up design that allows new design movements to move forward with genuine values and beliefs that run through everything.
If a house was brave enough Saul should lead a house where he could present us with a vision of how design, material and movement set into values connect Fashion and Identity into our futures. Give Saul the space and he will create a forest of inspiration that I would love to walk through daily.’
Fashion is seen to champion the latest trends, however often lost in the mix is the complex and idiosyncratic relationship between a garment’s fibre and design and how it will inevitably be used and this requires designers who aren’t afraid to think outside of the box, negating linear ways of working. By harnessing merino’s unique properties Nash has delivered a collection which articulates and fosters sustainability awareness in the sector. This awareness is building in momentum as sustainability continues to be a key challenge in tackling environmental degradation, something which requires collective agency. However, while wool is renowned for being one of the best performing, circular and ecological fibres, it represents only 1% of the global fibre market. Therefore, by showcasing these attributes at a scale like this, the possibilities of using wool in new and innovative ways, as well as the potential to utilise the fibre at a local level are offered up, something which could be particularly cogent in reviving British wool.
Fashion Roundtable are currently seeking funding to address the wool industry as a missed opportunity in Britain. Focusing on British wool as a medium, the unique programme will establish the scale and specifics of support required for the sector. To find out more or express interest in funding, please contact admin@fashionroundtable.co.uk