Loro Piana's Knit Design Award: A Celebration of Young Talent and Innovation
Loro Piana, the Italian luxury brand owned by LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, has once again showcased its commitment to nurturing young talent in the art of knitting. The 10th edition of the Loro Piana 2026 Knit Design Award, held at the Rossana Orlandi Gallery in Milan, celebrated the winners of a contest that challenges students to infuse innovation into the brand's signature yarns.
The theme for this year's competition, "Knitting Light - Craft on the Evolution of Colour", tasked students with experimenting with one mélange and up to three mouliné cashmere yarns. The brief was to embrace technology's transformative power to enhance shades and create a convertible garment or silhouette representing transformation and evolution.
The winning project, "Glitsky - Mother of Pearl", was created by students Viola Schmidt and Halla Lilja Ármannsdóttir from the Swedish School of Textiles, tutored by Professor Lara Alvarez. The project took inspiration from the natural phenomenon of sunlight hitting crystallized clouds and refracting a full palette of colors. The students employed Loro Piana's cashmere and other specialty yarns to create a modular, transformable midi dress with a structured top layer and a softer under layer, each characterized by a patchwork of diamond-shaped patterns.
The winners will receive a scholarship from Loro Piana consisting of 10,000 euros per student, a contract to work for the company, and the opportunity to develop their samples into viable garments with help from the house's knitwear team. The final products will be showcased at the upcoming edition of the textile trade show Pitti Filati, to be held in Florence from June 24 to 26.
A special mention award was bestowed on the project presented by Li-Yue Chen and Tzu-Wei Yang from Shih Chien University in Taipei. The Knit Design Award's anniversary edition saw the participation of eight renowned design schools, including Italy's Accademia Costume e Moda, Tokyo's Bunka Fashion College, École Duperré Paris, New York's Parsons School of Design, and Shih Chien University.
Loro Piana's CEO, Frédéric Arnault, emphasized the importance of the art of knitting and the brand's responsibility to express it more globally, inspiring students and people to make a career in this beautiful world of knitting. He encouraged students to be demanding, curious, rigorous, and never stop questioning limits and seeking new paths.
The jury for the award included Loro Piana executives Elvira Grimaldi, Alessandra Varianini, Lucia De Cet, designer Edward Buchanan, Anna Dello Russo, Sara Sozzani Maino, Satoshi Kuwata, and Rossana Orlandi. The brand also set up a dedicated exhibition space at the Rossana Orlandi Gallery featuring winning projects from 2016 onward to showcase the contest's evolution and the brand's growing investment in the award.
In my opinion, Loro Piana's Knit Design Award is a testament to the brand's commitment to innovation and creativity in the world of knitting. The contest not only challenges students to push the boundaries of their craft but also provides them with valuable opportunities to develop their skills and showcase their talent. The winning projects demonstrate an extraordinary fusion of artistic vision and technical mastery, and I look forward to seeing the next 10 years of the knit design world.
