Academy Program Pilot

ACADEMY PROGRAM PILOT

WELCOME TO THE HOOKED METAVERSE

October 17th marked the kick-off of the first VORN Academy Program as part of the Innovation Lab. Until December 9th, nine international design talents conceived and realized a phygital fashion capsule collection with a circular approach under the guidance of experienced trainers. Both the designers and the VORN Academy were supported by the renowned industry partners Zalando, Kornit Digital and Unity.

The final phygital capsule collection was presented to the public in the immersive showcase exhibition “HOOKED” during Berlin Fashion Week in January 2023.

The showcase featured three physical looks with a circular approach. Each garment of the looks was produced by using sustainable materials and printing technology, AI-generated prints, and digital pattern making and sampling. All looks were also translated into avatars in the “HOOKED” Metaverse, a digital art space, designed and realized by the designers.

The message of both the designs and the concept was based on the designers' love-hate relationship with their role in the fashion industry. The task of designing a phygital and circular collection seemed paradoxical. After all, it is most sustainable not to produce new fashion. One collection became three looks. Physical and digital and with a conceptual background that makes you think. About fashion, sustainability, and self-expression.

TO THE PROJECT WEBSITE

THE PARTNERS

Zalando is one of the leading online platforms for fashion and lifestyle in Europe, with more than 49 million active customers in 25 countries. The product range includes clothing, shoes, accessories, and cosmetics from international brands and local labels. Zalando sees itself as Europe's most fashionable tech company and has the vision to be the Starting Point for Fashion and a sustainable platform with a net positive impact on people and the planet.

Unity is the world's leading technology platform for creating and running interactive RT3D content in real-time 3D. As one of the most successful runtime and development environments, Unity has optimized processes in this area for almost every industry. As an industry leader, Unity will partner with the VORN Academy to support participating designers and labels in digital product development, virtual work and avatar design.

Kornit Digital, a publicly traded company, is a global leader in sustainable, on-demand, digital fashionX and textile production technologies, redefining the future of fashion technology. Kornit develops operating systems for the fashion industry, with new end-to-end solutions that manage workflows and fulfillment in a sustainable and clear way. With customers in more than 100 countries worldwide, Kornit will change the digital world of fashion.