Telfar Wins CFDA Vogue Fashion Fund

This year, CVFF awarded Telfar Clemens of the brand Telfar with the competition's highly coveted first place prize. In an interview with Vogue, Clemens describes his brands' identity as “horizontal, democratic, universal"–all of which are underscored in his androgynous and versatile designs and his decidedly diverse casting choices for runway shows and campaigns. On Telfar's About page, the brand is pitched as a "unisex line Est in 2005 in NYC by Telfar Clemens and sold internationally. It's not for you — it's for everyone."

This year's Fashion Fund finalists featured a slew of talented designers, from more familiar fixtures in the industry and repeat contestants like Chromat, to fashion houses just beginning to hit their full stride, like Mateo and Jordan Askill.

Creativity, ingenuity and fluidity aside, Telfar undoubtedly distinguished itself amongst its steep competition with the sheer amount of personality imbued into all aspects of the brand. A quick scroll through Telfar's website alone reveals Clemens' expansive artistic vision and sense of humor through a series of gifs, supercuts of backstage and each season's beautifully staged and shot collection.

Apart from the $400,000 first place cash prize and business mentoring from industry professionals, winning the Fashion Fund is often a pivotal moment in a designer's career trajectory. Past winners include current industry heavyweights like Proenza Schouler, Alexander Wang, Altuzarra (who served as one of the judges for this year's panel), Public School, Derek Lam, Thom Browne, Rodarte and Tabitha Simmons.

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