Two days full of unforgettable encounters, impressions and creative excitement: on July 2 and 3, Berlin Fashion Week offered young fashion talents the opportunity to present themselves to an international audience of professionals in several formats. Our students and graduates from the Fashion degree program were also there - and were able to impress across the board:

• Seven graduates showed their collections at the Graduate Show.
• At the Berlin Salon, Lennart Bohle, Lilian Brade, Niclas Hasemann, Jonas Konrad and Martha Hupfauer were able to exhibit their designs at the Museum of Photography.
• Henning Sadau was selected for the new show format Berlin Curated - accompanied by Christiane Arp, long-time editor-in-chief of Vogue Germany.
• Lennart Bohle also received a special prize from the Neo.Fashion. Award. Read more here.

Innovative fashion at the graduate show of Neo.Fashion.

At the largest showcase for young German fashion talents, selected graduates from German universities present their collections at the Neo.Fashion. graduate show every year. This time, seven students from Pforzheim took part: Julia Judenhahn explores felting as a material innovation made of wool in "Puregrid". Arlinda Beqiri's "Dashurita" is dedicated to Albanian identity and biculturalism. In their joint collection "Sex&Jeans", Max Kaupp and Mika Sperle play with the contrasts of an ecstatic night of partying and the bitter awakening the next day. For "De Fem", Carla Pretzsch was inspired by women's circles in connection with the textile trade. With "trans*", Henning Sadau breaks down binary gender norms and rethinks clothing and its boundaries with exaggerated shapes and complex silhouettes. Lennart Bohle also showed his "modi funis" collection.

The seven graduates presented their looks to a specialist audience, media and fashion enthusiasts at a spectacular fashion show in the Atrium Tower. "For us, this is a showcase to the outside world. At best, companies and prospective students are sitting there - a good moment to network," explain Prof. Claudia Throm and Prof. Simone Sommer, heads of the Fashion course at the School of Design, who accompanied the students in Berlin.

Art and fashion meet in the Berlin Salon

Another format at Berlin Fashion Week, personally curated by Christiane Arp, long-standing editor-in-chief of Vogue and board member of the Fashion Council Germany, is the Berlin Salon: selected students and graduates presented their work in the Museum of Photography - against the backdrop and in a visual interplay with renowned photographic art. Four Pforzheim fashion talents were there: Lilian Brade and Lennart Bohle, who graduated this year, as well as alumni Niclas Hasemann, Jonas Konrad and Martha Hupfauer.

Henning Sadau selected for new Berlin Curated format

The now established Neo.Fashion. and Berliner Salon events have been joined by a new stage for young fashion talents: Berlin Curated offers a nationwide platform of excellence for up-and-coming designers. With a professional runway show and a showroom for trade visitors and fashion enthusiasts, Christiane Arp and the Fashion Council Germany association bring promising talents to the big stage. And a fashion graduate from Pforzheim University was there: Henning Sadau was selected to present three looks from his current collection. One of the highlights was meeting Christiane Arp - souvenir photo included.

Promoting young talent at Berlin Fashion Week

The importance of Berlin Fashion Week for young fashion talents is growing more and more with various programs. Neo.Fashion., which has developed into one of the most important platforms for young fashion talents in German-speaking countries since 2017, is central to this. It has been an integral part of Berlin Fashion Week since 2019 and offers graduates of fashion academies a stage to present their final collections to an international audience.

Berlin Fashion Week itself has repositioned itself under the leadership of the Fashion Council Germany, which was founded in 2015. Since October 2022, the association has been coordinating the event on behalf of the Senate Department for Economics, Energy and Public Enterprises, with a particular focus on promoting young talent, sustainability and inclusion. Overall, Berlin Fashion Week has developed into one of the most important platforms for young designers in Europe and offers them the opportunity to make valuable contacts for their professional future.