New president Valérie Duport and director Hugo Lucchino are refocusing resources on young creators while looking to secure the institution’s long-term future.

HYÈRES, France – Turning over a new leaf for its 41st edition, the Hyères International Festival of Fashion, Photography and Accessories entered a new chapter under its incoming leadership team, with a jury headed by Chloé creative director Chemena Kamali selecting this year’s winners.

Chinese designer Yui Chen emerged as the winner of the Grand Jury Prize of the fashion competition for her collection, titled “Food Cover.”

Kamali was joined by last year’s grand jury prize winner Lucas Emilio Brunner on the jury along with Harper’s Bazaar France fashion director Elodie David Touboul, Agency Maybe artistic directors Charles Levai and Kevin Tekinel, 10 Magazine editor-in-chief Sophia Neophitou and photography duo Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin.

Inspired by the humble food cover, Chen deconstructed its structure to create three-dimensional silhouettes that challenged conventional ideas of clothing with sculptural form, material experimentation and reinvention of space around the body.

Across the collection, familiar garments such as sleeping dresses and shirts became vehicles for exploring volume, sheer layering and foldability and crossed the runway with bounce. Recycled leather offered another approach, with an all-encompassing coat covered in bows.

Balancing domestic references with technical innovation, Chen approached each garment as a wearable sculpture paired with protective headgear. “I want to change how we see things,” she said, noting that her goal as a designer is to take familiar items and encourage people to look at them in a new way.

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