The BFC Fashion Arts Foundation and the Royal Academy Schools are committed to encouraging and nurturing future talent. A new commissioning project will bring together fashion designers and visual artists to collaborate across art forms. The project is called Fashion Art Commissions and will pair graduates from the RA Schools with NEWGEN and NEWGEN MEN designers.
The commission will produce artworks that will form part of an auction at Christie’s. The pieces will be on display from the 31st October – 11th November at Christie’s King Street gallery and will then be part of an online auction from 22nd November – 1st December. The money raised from the auction will go back into the BFC Fashion Arts Foundation, one of the BFC’s registered charities.
For the inaugural Fashion Art Commissions there are four pairs:
Agi & Sam and Joe Frazer
Alex Mullins and Amy Petra Woodward
Diego Vanassibara and Victoria Adam
Kit Neale and Jonathan Trayte
Eliza Bonham Carter, Head of the Royal Academy Schools and curator of Fashion Art Commissions said, ‘Little did we know when we started out on this collaboration between the Royal Academy Schools and the British Fashion Council what extraordinary works would be produced. The collaborative pairs of artists from the RA Schools and emerging designers have worked together discovering commonalities and divergences in their interests and processes to produce works that are bold, surprising and intriguing.’
Caroline Rush CBE, Chief Executive, British Fashion Council said, ‘This project is all about bringing together talented creatives from different visual backgrounds. Cross-cultural partnerships help push innovation and creativity and having the fashion and art industries working together allows the participants to share knowledge and practices. The Fashion Art Commissions project at its heart is about creating inspiring and educational content as well as generating funds for future artists and designers.’
Paola Saracino Fendi, Head of Online Auction, Post-War & Contemporary Art Department, Christie’s London added, ‘The vibrant dialogue created between the young artists from the RA Schools and the fashion designers has been inspirational. Our vision for digital at Christie’s is to put together a selection of artworks that establish a visual conversation with contemporary art and I am thrilled that these emerging young talents have chosen to showcase their new works in the context of our upcoming online auction. The title of the exhibition and auction ‘Portfolio’ was chosen to highlight the strength of this incredibly diverse selection – it reads like a sketchbook of ideas and I hope viewers find it as forward-thinking and exciting as I do.’
The Fashion Arts Foundation trustees are Jane Boardman, Valeria Napoleone and Caroline Rush CBE.