41st Hyères International Festival of Fashion, Photography and Accessories

The 41st edition of the Hyères International Festival of Fashion, Photography and Accessories took place from Thursday 15 to Sunday 18 October 2026 at Villa Noailles: exhibitions will remain open to the public until 28 February 2027. Established in 1986 to promote and support international young designers, the Festival added a competition for upcoming photographers in 1997 and an award for young fashion accessory designers in 2016. Regarded as one of the longest-running fashion competitions for young professionals, Hyères awards a number of prizes to designers thanks to funding provided by its partners, who are committed to offering long-term support alongside the event organisers.

Once again this year, Emmetex, one of Italy’s most dynamic labelling companies renowned for its propensity for research and collaboration with upcoming and international designers, worked closely with and supported a group of participants, who were subsequently selected as finalists: Brais Albor Rodriguez, Farnia Salim, Matil Vanlint, Sofia Castellon and Xiao Xu for the fashion category, and Daniel Cheruzel, Juliette Pasquier, Matthieu Gautier and Sassa Ann van Wyk in the accessories category. Of these, some won individual titles. In the fashion section, Brais Albor Rodriguez was awarded both the ‘Special mention of the Jury’ and the ‘Public Prize – City of Hyères’. Brais combines a cutting- edge vision with impeccable technical expertise. Spanning bold tailoring to underwear and sportswear, his pieces are designed for plus-sized men and gym-goers. Real bodies, real proportions. By designing garments in non-standard sizes, Brais allows the body space to move and breathe, rather than constricting it.

Proudly designed for his community, Xiao Xu received the ‘Supima Prize’ for his menswear collection with a fetish-inspired aesthetic, which experiments with unconventional materials such as latex handcrafted to create intricately woven and sculpted knitwear. The result is a perfect blend of 1970s nostalgia and a daring yet understated sensuality. Turning to the world of accessories, Sassa Ann van Wyk was named the winner of the ‘Grand Prix of the Accessories Jury’: her ‘Archive of Motion’ collection explores the interplay between archive textile fragments and vital movement, translating traditional craftsmanship into contemporary headwear. Each piece transcends the static nature of the object, changing together with the wearer and reacting fluidly to their movements, the wind and the perspective.

The ‘AZ Academy Grant’ award went to Daniel Cheruzel, whose new collection focuses on three techniques for working with leather, as well as scales, scars and feathers. The range of accessories is conceived as an exploration of scale, in which each piece examines the relationship between surface, volume and the body through the concept of transformation. Three-dimensional textures, subcutaneous volumes and reliefs with a vaguely punk feel. The Hyères Festival thus reaffirms its status as a benchmark for cutting-edge talent and innovative design, hosting group exhibitions featuring the finalists, fashion shows, solo exhibitions by the previous year’s winners, workshops dedicated to premium craftsmanship, and conferences focusing on the challenges facing the fashion industry.