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Each year there are six section themes or ‘worlds’ for designers to be inspired by when entering the WOW Competition. This includes three recurring sections; Aotearoa, Avant-garde and Open, plus three unique themes which are announced each year.
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Child Section - Figments of Imagination
Rococo
Black White
Aotearoa
Avant-garde
Open
Child Section - Figments of Imagination
Draw on your own childhood memories or drawings; or be guided by a child in your life as you enter a secret make-believe world filled with imaginary friends and fantastical creatures. Breathe life into dreamlike or nightmarish characters. Consider colour, scale, and storytelling. Evoke a child’s sense of wonder and discovery. Garments must be suitable for comfortable wear by a child aged 6–12 years. Entries must be made by adults over the age of 18, as per Competition Rules.
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Rococo
Step into a world of opulence and unapologetic excess. Celebrate the lavish drama, spectacle and glorious rebellion of the Rococo age with gilded ornamentation, sumptuous textiles, and theatrical silhouettes for the grandest of entrances. Draw inspiration from an era at its most extravagant; whether through costume, architecture, furnishings, or the decorative arts.
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Black White
Create from the starkest palette and be inspired by how these opposites manifest in cinematography, nature, art, and symbolism. Explore duality, contrast or monochrome. Your wearable art creation can be black, white or a combination of both. There is no grey area here.
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Aotearoa
Reach into your unique connection, perspectives, original creativity and imagination to tell a story of your personal relationship with and aspirations for Aotearoa New Zealand.
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Avant-garde
Break the rules of fashion and push it into a world that is experimental, radical, and unorthodox. Create a work of wearable art that breaks new ground through innovation, form or structure.
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Cultural guidelines
When considering an entry design that represents the culture or lived experience of others, it is important to do so in ways that are meaningful, authentic, respectful and thoughtfully considered. To assist in this we have provided a set of Cultural Guidelines. We also offer further guidelines to support you when being inspired by elements of Māori Culture.
What judges look for
At the epicentre of WOW’s universe is an international wearable art competition that challenges artists and designers from all around the world to take art off the wall and onto the human form. The most innovative and outstanding entries are chosen to appear on stage as part of the annual World of WearableArt Show.
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Stay up-to-date with the latest from World of WearableArt. Sign up for our audience newsletter and be the first to know about ticket sales, exclusive offers, behind-the-scenes insights, and upcoming WOW experiences. Don't forget to join the Designers newsletter if you're interested in entering the Competition.
Designers Newsletter
Sign up as a designer to receive the newsletter.
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