For the second straight year, Kornit Digital North America, Mequon, Wis., and New York’s Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) collaborated in a unique project that involved design and digital print to fabrics.
This project was focused on encouraging students to create their own original designs that relate to the concept of sustainable, local, short-run production. With each design printed on the Kornit Allegro roll-to-roll textile system using the company’s NeoPigment ink, the three overall winners of the challenge will have their fabrics replicated as fashion items that feature strong eco-awareness and demonstrate how it can successfully be incorporated in the reproduction of greener garments.
The uniqueness of this project is that it enables designers to materialize their designs on any fabric on an immediate basis with no minimum yardage requirements, and at the highest industrial print quality and standards, according to the company.
The three finalists in this year’s FIT design challenge were Hyuna Kim, Konchok Bercholz and Elena Kanagy-Loux. Their work was judged and selected by Leslie Baker, designer at Bon-Ton; Vanessa DeSousa, development manager of Prints and Embellishments; Tom Cody of Tom Cody Designs; Melissa Niederman, art director of The Style Council; and Joe Castaldo, president of The Style Council.
Representing Kornit Digital was Paul Borucki, managing director of Kornit Digital North America; Jim Manelski, North American wide format business development manager; and Erin Doty, North American art director and project manager.
For more information, visit kornit.com. — L.M.
