Jean Paul Lespagnard's victory march

The past week was without a doubt a winner for designer Jean Paul Lespagnard who both won the Unlimited PR Creativity Award (one year of press support and a money prize) and the Modo Prize for Best Designer (7500€)!

Lespagnard studied in Liège and Luxemburg and learned the tricks of the trade in New York with Anna Sui and Brussels at Annemie Verbeke's studie.  After winning two prizes during the Festival in Hyères in 2008, he designed a capsule collection for the French prêt-à-porter brand 1.2.3.  Lespagnard presented his first collection during the Paris fashion week in March 2011 and gained international recognition with his second collection (SS12) "Somewhere in Between" during the latest fashion week.  It's there that Suzy Menkes, New York Times fashion journalist, noticed his talent: "There are unsung talents on the Paris scene like Jean-Paul Lespagnard, whose exceptionally clever cuts created transformable clothes that looked simple on his tiny showroom runway.  Even the inspiration of the designer, who won the Hyères fashion contest in 2008, was totally imaginative: hands reaching toward heaven through a church window that transformed into a vision of fervent basketball players. He produced intriguing prints and an overall sport theme that looked smart, right and completely original. (Suzy Menkes, NYT, 2 Oktober 2011).

(Copyright: Ulrike Biets)