Since the designation as a Creative City of Design in 2014, Bilbao (Spain), has experienced over the past years a social, cultural and economic transformation, placing creativity, design and culture at the heart of its sustainable development strategies.

Working with the public and private sectors, as well as with the civil society, the Bilbao International Art & Fashion (BIAAF) is a platform devoted to supporting promising fashion designers from all over the world, to showcase their innovation and strong sense of creativity.

Reaching over 6,000 emerging fashion designers and 800 fashion design schools, BIAAF has become one of the most relevant events of its kind on the international scene.

For its seventh edition, the BIAAF Competition has attracted more than 1,200 young talents from over 90 countries, thereby developing a hub of creativity and innovation, as well as broadening professional opportunities for creators in the design sector. While offering visibility to new fashion talents, the BIAAF Competition encourages collaborative projects and aims to strengthen international cooperation between the UNESCO Creative Cities of Design.

This year’s finalists included emerging designers from UNESCO Creative Cities of Design, such as Budapest (Hungary), Helsinki (Finland), Istanbul (Turkey) and Seoul (Republic of Korea). Kim Yeonghyeon from Seoul and Cristian Padilla from Bilbao were awarded The Best Accessory Design and The Best Local Emerging Designer respectively.