The Samsung Fashion & Design Fund was launched in the autumn of
2005 in order to discover and recruit up-and-coming designers in
Korea so as to help them fulfill their potential and thereby
advance the Korean fashion industry in a systematic, practical
manner. As such, the Fund represents the fundamental mission of
the Samsung Group in general, which is to contribute to the
advancement of humankind through recruiting and cultivating
talents. As a member of the Samsung Group, Samsung C&T
Corporation launched the SFDF in order to provide efficient and
professional support for talents in fashion and design, just as
other member companies of the Group provides assistance for
talents in social work, environmental management, and cultural
and artistic activities.
SFDF VISION
New cultures spring up and old cultures evolve around the
world today, thanks to the continuing interaction and exchange
among cultures and people. Fashion and design are not immune to
these sweeping innovations. It has become much more complex and
difficult to predict, compared to a century ago, when and where
new trends will begin and how they will spread around the world.
In this day and age, fashion worldwide is shaped not only by such
pop stars and celebrities as Madonna, but also by nomadic girls
on the Tibetan highlands and ordinary Parisiennes on their
bicycles.
Therefore, the focus of the fashion industry today is
not only how to generate a wholly new style and design, but on
synthesizing diverse elements of different cultures and styles
across places and ages in order to create a universally appealing
style. We live a truly cosmopolitan age, in which all members of
the humankind are capable of setting and following trends
applicable worldwide.
South Korea, which has received a variety of cultural
benefits and inspirations from around the world for over a
century, now faces an increased responsibility to make increasing
contribution to this cosmopolitan culture pot. Koreans now need
to participate actively in the innovation that is taking place
around the world, seeking to provide resources for more inspiring
and fulfilling lives for the generations to come by enabling them
to partake of wider and more diverse cultural experiences. Korea
has unique aesthetic traditions and a well-defined system of
aesthetic values that has been preserved intact over the
centuries. There are also talented Koreans who are capable of
sublimating these elements of Korean aesthetics into fashion.
The young leaders the SFDF have met are brilliant
innovators who can ably and creatively synthesize the various
inspirations and ideas they have received from their learning and
living places around the world - New York, Milan, and Paris -
with the elements of historical legacy and spiritual tradition
they inherited from their parents' generation. The SFDF prepares
for the next phase of the Korean fashion industry with these
gifted designers.
SFDF ACTIVITIES
The fashion industry is a highly competitive, cut-throat world
driven by fast-paced global changes, posing an ever-rising entry
barrier for emerging designers. Many prospective designers, who
should serve as the building blocks for a brighter future in the
fashion industry, do not even stand a chance of rising up to the
challenge and showing what they can achieve. SFDF aims to
highlight such lesser known yet exceptionally talented Korean
designers struggling to make their name in different parts of the
world and to provide multifaceted support to help them grow and
thrive.
SFDF, celebrating its fourteenth anniversary this year,
has emerged as a highly trusted incubator and test bed for truly
gifted designers, with many past SFDF winners continuing to make
notable strides forward. In the long run, SFDF also plans to
nurture talented individuals in various fields under the
realization that the interaction with industrial design,
architecture, interior design, and fine arts will further inspire
and stimulate the growth of fashion.