The winner of the 2008 CFDA Fund Award, an honor that comes along with cash, business counseling, and general support will be announced on Monday night. We thought it might be helpful to handicap the contestants, explaining who has the best chance of winning and why. Start your betting pools now.
Long Shots:Though the feather-festooned hats by Albertus Q. Swanepoel of Albertus Quartus, Alejandro Ingelmo's croc-skinnned futurist shoes, and Irene Neuwirth's baroque jewelry are all truly impressive, but accessories makers are traditionally runners up. Also, Juan Carlos Obando and John Patrick Organic need more national recognition to win.More picks and our winner below.
Underdogs: Sophie Buhai and Lisa Mayock of Vena Cava, and Swaim and Christina Hutson of Obedient Sons and Daughters are brilliant, subversive designers who could use the leg up. We're rooting for them (particularly madames VC) but even though the stated mission of the Award is to help young designers, it often goes to those who are already close to large-scale success. This is, after all, a very Vogue-ish competition.
Front Runners:Condé Nast loves Alexander Wang and dresses and t-shirts are perfectly structured, but Rogan won last year for his dark streetwear so… Jason Wu's embroidered pieces make him the dark horse of the competition. But our pick for winner is Richard Chai. He's glamorous, yet understated, spartan, and yet rich. Also, his stuff will look great in the pages of Vogue and he already has a Target line, which fits into the Fund's pattern of awarding success.So our Final Projections are:
Vena Cava—Runner Up
Alexander Wang—Runner Up
Richard Chai—Winner
Vena Cava—Runner Up
Alexander Wang—Runner Up
Richard Chai—Winner
We admit, the cult of Wang or Vena Cava could trump all this. Still, you've got our picks—now write yours below.