BIAAF - Bilbao International Art & Fashion Names Lan Krebs and Sara Genin as Winners of Its 10th Edition
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After receiving nearly 2,000 entries from 91 countries, the international competition has recognized the projects by both designers as the most outstanding entries in a record-breaking edition that once again puts Bilbao on the global map of emerging fashion talent.
Bilbao, June 26, 2026 BIAAF Bilbao International Art & Fashion has announced the winners of its tenth edition during the grand finale held this Thursday at the Museum of Sacred Art in Bilbao. Lan Krebs, in the Fashion Design category, and Sara Genin, in the Accessory Design category, were recognized by the international jury as the creators of the most outstanding entries.
The 2026 edition saw the highest number of participants in the competition’s history, with nearly 2,000 entries from 91 countries. This record-breaking volume required the jury to conduct a rigorous selection process to narrow the field down to a final group of 30 designers from some of the world’s leading educational institutions and creative hubs.
Two proposals that represent the future of fashion
In the Fashion Design category, the jury awarded first prize to Lan Krebs for Jersey Diversity.
Inspired by regeneration, the project reinterprets the role of jersey in contemporary fashion and rethinks innovation through the care, repair, and revitalization of existing textile technologies. It explores how undervalued industrial materials and standardized fabrics can be transformed through subtle interventions, mimicking the complexity of nature. Using machine-knitted tubular fabrics, the project investigates how layering, wrapping, and the sculptural quality of the fabric create shapes on the body without resorting to conventional garment structures.
Meanwhile, the Accessory Design Award went to Sara Genin for her collection Syrphidae.
Her design is inspired by the mimicry of syrphid flies
a form of mimicry that serves as a metaphor for the female body’s and nature’s ability to transform, reinvent themselves, and resist. The collection seeks to tell a different story about the female body: how certain parts are silenced or marked by difficult emotions and memories that jewelry can reawaken and heal. It also celebrates resilience, portraying a fierce and metamorphic female body. With nature as the starting point for the creative process, natural elements are collected, molded, and incorporated through a sculptural process using the lost-wax technique.
The winners in the Fashion Design and Accessory Design categories will each receive a prize of 10,000 euros, in addition to joining the international talent network promoted by BIAAF, a platform that connects emerging designers with schools, companies, institutions, and leading professionals from around the world, fostering new opportunities for training, collaboration, and professional development.
Awards and Recognitions
The jury also awarded several special prizes that reinforce the competition’s commitment to innovation, training, and excellence in craftsmanship. Kexuan Liu and William Palmer were honored with the CLO 3D Awards, which include annual licenses for the leading digital fashion design software and, for the first-place winner, access to specialized training and personalized mentoring.
Milagros Pereda, for her part, received the PYRATEX Award, worth 1,500 euros in innovative and sustainable fabrics for the development of future creative projects. In addition, Amaury Darras has been recognized with the Craft The Leather Award, an international initiative launched by the Consorzio Vera Pelle Italiana Conciata al Vegetale that promotes excellence in leather craftsmanship and fosters the development of new generations of designers specializing in this material.
This edition also honored Usune Bravo with the KM0 Honorary Award for her career as a Basque designer. “Usune represents one of the success stories that best reflect BIAAF’s mission to identify, train, and promote new design talent internationally. She was part of the first cohorts of prominent designers from Bizkaia associated with BIAAF and was a recipient of the scholarship program at Central Saint Martins, jointly sponsored by BIAAF and BBK,” says Mercedes de Miguel.
This milestone also recognizes the value of a shared commitment to creativity, innovation, and talent. This commitment has helped establish Bilbao and Bizkaia as a leading hub for the creative industries, demonstrating that investing in new generations of designers is investing in the future of society and the economy.
A Final Marked by Creative Excellence
The 10th edition of the BIAAF international competition has once again stood out for the high caliber of the finalist entries. The projects submitted have addressed issues such as sustainability, materials research, cultural identity, technological innovation, and new ways of understanding the relationship between fashion, art, and society.
“We’ve also seen an evolution within the jury. Therefore, I believe that the conceptual aspect has carried significant weight. We’re in a phase that, from my point of view, needs to transition to a more stable one. For Bilbao, what is happening here is extremely important. This interplay of ideas, this clash of concepts, this amalgamation of materials, these vibrant colors that are emerging and which have also brought us through a more subdued phase, with much greater representation of darkness and such diverse forms I believe is a cry of optimism,” says María Victoria Cañas, president of Bilbao International Art & Fashion.
More than two decades fostering new generations of designers
Since its inception, BIAAF has held 10 editions and spent more than 20 years working to connect creativity, education, and the industry, helping emerging designers gain access to professional opportunities, international networks, and platforms for visibility.
Throughout its many editions, the competition has contributed to the professional development of numerous creators who are now part of the international fashion industry, establishing itself as a leading platform for identifying the voices that will shape the sector’s future. “The competition has grown in scope, but the most important aspect—the trust that designers and schools place in us—has also grown. That means we now have a much broader scope and a better competition,” adds María Victoria Cañas.
With the celebration of this tenth edition, Bilbao once again places itself at the center of the international conversation on creativity, innovation, and emerging fashion, reaffirming the institution’s role as one of the world’s leading observatories of emerging talent.
About BIAAF
BIAAF (Bilbao International Art & Fashion), together with its incubator BIAAF Lab, is an international platform dedicated to discovering, promoting, and supporting emerging talent in fashion design, fostering innovation, sustainability, and dialogue between fashion and art. Based in Bilbao, BIAAF supports emerging fashion designers with the goal of launching their careers in the industry. It also aims to demonstrate that fashion can be art, culture, and development, and that young talent is the driving force behind creative change in the 21st century.
Patricia Holdener
Editor-In-Chief
Luxe Magazine Switzerland
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