EU
Young Fashion Summit

The symposium, EU Young Fashion Summit, held at Vienna Hofburg in May 2006, addressed the subject of “National Identities within the European Union“ by means of the supra-regional language of fashion. Commissioned by the Federal Chancellery of the Republic of Austria, Unit F büro für mode conceived and co-organised the summit of young European designers as a fashion gala and symposium devoted to the joint future of a Europe multifaceted with regard to tradition and style. Since fashion also serves as a reflection on cultural traditions and as an expression of modern, progressive thought, Unit F chose a special interpretation of European national costumes for the opening ceremony of the event. For this purpose, Unit F designed a concept for a fashion show that started off with twenty-five stylised, all-white national costumes produced, in collaboration with the Modeschule Herbststraße, in accordance with original cuts from the respective countries.
In the further course of the evening, twenty-five contemporary fashion designers from twenty-five different EU-countries showed their collections.
 
The summit culminated in a symposium which saw young fashion designers discussing the theme of Fashion and Identity with established, international designers such as Valentino and the architect Rem Kolhaas.