THEN AND NOW: It’s not just 35 years that separate the designs of 1989 ANDAM Prize winners Martin Margiela and Olivier Guillemin from the one that netted Christopher Esber the top gong for 2024.
From concept to execution, there’s barely a common thread between the designers behind the first three looks that greet visitors to the “Modes, Nouvelles générations” exhibition at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs celebrating the ANDAM Prize’s 35th anniversary, open until March 30.
And that’s a good thing, said Sophie Lemahieu, the curator in charge of post-1947 fashion and textiles collections for the Parisian museum.
“Finding coherence for the exhibition was difficult and that’s a good sign for the vitality of the [ANDAM] Prize and the association as it distinguished designers very different from each other,” she told WWD during a preview. “What we have tried to showcase is this diversity and how the prize has not tried to impose its own style but always kept its openness.”
The exhibition spans 16 silhouettes and 14 accessories that are arranged on an oval 300-square-foot plinth, with names such as Jeremy Scott, Gareth Pugh, Y/Project under Glenn Martens’ tenure as well as all the 2024 and 2023 winners.
Receiving one of the ANDAM accolades – there have been multiple formats and categories over the decades – is often the only common thread between the 40-something laureates. Instead, Lemahieu worked to highlight ideas that are common between them, even when decades apart; exceptional techniques, or innovative approaches.
Take the latex work of Arthur Avellano, 2023 ANDAM Pierre Bergé Prize winner; the size inclusive ideals of Ester Manas; Marine Serre’s upcycling, or the way Louis Gabriel Nouchi’s tailoring echoed that of Udo Edling, who received a fellowship from Yves Saint Laurent in 1996.
Accessories are dotted throughout, including the vase earrings of Stéphanie D’heygere, a sculpture by jeweler Charlotte Chesnais and a trio of Ruslan Baginskiy’s hats.
A particular focus was put on the footwear of the late bootmaker Vicente Rey, a 2003 winner.
In an unusual move, the ANDAM exhibit was placed on the third floor, on a platform overlooking the central nave and a point of passage between other sections of the museum.
“I would like this to be an arresting plinth that strikes their curiosity and make them want to know more,” said Lemahieu. “They might recognize some names like Martin Margiela at the entrance and come to discover this young generation.”
She hopes it will also encourage the fashion crowd to wander off the beaten track toward other decorative arts they wouldn’t be particularly familiar with.
As for any passing designers, she hopes it will remind them that creative horizons are wide open. “You just shouldn’t close any doors and there’s no need to follow what others designers do,” she said. “Each time, [the winners] have been those who carved their own paths.”
