The winning projects are a painting, sculpture and performance work referencing the transatlantic slave trade that challenges colonial perceptions of Black masculinity. A womenswear collection handcrafted in scrap paper that represents movement, freedom and joy. A plant-based alternative to synthetic hair extensions that's not toxic to humans or planet. A fashion collection embodying spiritually through knitwear embroidered with homegrown crystals. And a deeply personal story told through animation, as the artist repairs her relationship with her mother.
Bhavna Madan Mohan, MA Character Animation, If I Raised My Mother
Patrick Garvey, BA Fashion (Knit), CrystallineJoshua Obichere, MA Fine Art, Take Me To Freedom, 2024Funmi Olawuyi, BA Product and Industrial Design, Eso Extensions
Izzy McCormac, BA Fashion (Womenswear), I AM REALLY A KITE
Trailer for 'If I Raised My Mother' by Bhavna Madan Mohan, MA Character Animation, winner of the NOVA Award and YourNOVA People's Choice Award 2024
"‘If I Raised My Mother’ is a two-minute film that was born out of an argument I once had with my mother. I’d told her that I would break the cycle of unhappy parent-child relationships someday, and she said, ‘It’s not as easy as you think it is’. This film is my take on what I would’ve done differently if I’d raised my mother."
Sometime within the first month of production, I realised that my mother was right. It wasn’t as easy as I thought it was. I had to re-examine everything that happened and try to understand why it happened. And so the film became a little less of ‘I wish I was raised better’, and a little more of ‘I wish I could’ve done this for Mother when she was growing up’. This is a film I made for myself, and for all other Indian daughters – my mother included.
My final collection draws inspiration from my personal experiences with Catholic guilt incorporating Catholic and Rococo imagery that I was surrounded by as a child and my teens with my experiences as an altar boy and coming from an Irish family. The goal is to reinvent this imagery and use it as a source of inspiration to create a collection that explores spirituality and religion from a personal point of view merging both Catholicism and modern day forms of spirituality such as crystals to create a collection.
In order to achieve this, I have developed a unique process of crystallisation using a scientific process to create crystals that only grow on specific knit structures, which I use to create ‘embroidered’ knits and garments. These garments represent a new form of spirituality that revolves around crystals as a source of connection to the divine. This textile process is something I’ve spent 2 years developing using a process of crystallisation that fuses with knit structures."
My work challenges the way the viewer sees Black masculinity when faced with the colonial history and realities of the Black male body. It’s an installation piece in the form of a skeletal timber ship, incorporating sound, performance, a painting as a sail and an embroidery piece, displayed separately.
I want this work to help audiences recognise the colonial history attached to the Black body but also the liberation, being detached from stereotypes that try to restrain the Black body especially among queer spaces. Additionally, I want people to find liberation from situations which made them feel restrained, and also gain from this installation performance."
Eso Extensions are plant-based hair extensions made from pineapple fibre. They offer a safer alternative to petroleum-based hair extensions, which have been linked to cancer. The extensions utilise natural softeners, plant-based dyes and pineapple leaves – which are often discarded – promoting a healthier body and environment.
These extensions are a core part of many Black women’s haircare routines and are worn for many weeks. Despite this, popular brands including Xpression produce petroleum-based extensions that contain cancerous ingredients like PVC and vinyl chloride. Furthermore, synthetic extensions pile up in landfills and pollute water systems due to their single-use nature and non-biodegradable material."
This project challenges industry norms, questioning the true meaning of our clothes. I crafted this collection entirely from paper, sourced from the Scrap Store a charity based in South London and waste pleating paper from Ciment Pleating in North London. Valuing each material was crucial, considering its significance to my project and its potential to inspire and advance my practice. Each piece is handcrafted and can be reverted to pulp, ready to become new paper for future projects.
The collection is based by the British seaside, my childhood home. In six looks I aim to capture the emotion and movement of being swept up and carried by the wind, looking at a child-like untainted feeling of JOY. The garments UNRAVEL & WRAP, BOUNCE & SPIN as the models are carried by the sea breeze. I use experimental process driven research to push my practice, removing the rules of regular garment design by using paper. Just as a child I can make something with all my passion and conviction but with no worries of what happens next, I do it because I love it.
The first prize, runners up and the Country & Townhouse Regeneration Award were decided by the jury. The YourNOVA People's Choice Award was voted for by the public.
Jose Miguel Sokoloff, Global President, MullenLowe Global Creative CouncilClaire Hollands, Chief Executive Officer, MullenLowe UK Emma Marsh, Head of Fashion, Country & TownhouseAnand Saggar, Medical Genetic Expert, Art Advisor and Gallerist, The Graduate Art ShowDarren McKoy, Global Creative Director, Dr. Martens Francesca Schuster, Principal Consultant – Strategy, Alchemists Liz Ebengo, Narrative Designer and Material Researcher, MullenLowe NOVA 2023 Winner Lucie Davis, Designer, Artist and Creative, YourNOVA 2016 Winner