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Edible Fashion Awards

The Edible Fashion Awards is a spectacular wearable art event celebrating Hawke’s Bay’s innovative creative spirit and our rich history as a quality food producing region.

Each year up to 300 designers create fascinating works of wearable art from food, imitation food or food packaging. Following a day of preliminary judging, in which all entrants have the opportunity to showcase their creations on the runway, a panel of accomplished New Zealand judges select finalists to be part of the public show.

Stunning designs intertwined with quality entertainment from across New Zealand, makes the Edible Fashion Awards a unique, exciting and much-talked-about night out and a highlight of the Hawke’s Bay event calendar.

Hastings Art & Culture Trust

In 1994 Mayor Jeremy Dwyer established the Trust (originally the Hawke’s Bay Springfest Trust then the Hastings Blossom Festival Trust) to recommence the Hastings Blossom Festival after a period of inactivity. The Blossom Festival, featuring a parade of floats intricately decorated with real or artificial blossoms, was created in 1950 to encourage community spirit, celebrate the beginning of the fruit-growing season and attract visitors to the region.

Subsequently, the running of the annual Blossom Festival was taken over by Creative Hastings, now Arts Inc. Heretaunga. The Trust was renamed the Hastings Art & Culture Trust and took over the management of the Edible Fashion Awards, which had been created and previously produced by the Hastings Business Association.

Current Hastings Art & Culture Trust Board
Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst (Chair), Daniel Betty, Derek Burns, Pitsch Leiser

Judges

Each year we bring together a panel of expert judges from across New Zealand. Past judges have included leading New Zealand designers and fashion gurus, a Masterchef judge, multiple World of WearableArt (WOW) winners, an international fashion model, Weta Workshop collaborators, award-winning photographers and TV personalities.

Meet our 2020 judges… this year’s incredible panel is drawn entirely from our own region!

Kate MacKenzie

Head Judge

Kate is a surrealist painter and wearable arts designer. She has received five special awards at the international World of Wearable Art competition (WOW), including the Supreme WOW Award in 2014. Kate was selected for Hawkes Bay Review and EAST Art Awards early in her career. This year she is once again a finalist in the prestigious NZ Adam Portraiture Awards with her portrait of Dame Suzie Moncrieff and her wearable art will be exhibited at Te Papa from December this year. Both her portraits and wearable art have elements of a montage, bringing together emblems of her thoughts and concerns for the world, including changing paradigms in societal beliefs and mindsets. A selection of Kate’s paintings, including from her recent exhibition MAYDAY FOR CICADAS, along with a series of limited edition prints, are available from katemackenzie.co.nz

David Trubridge

Judge

David is New Zealand’s best known furniture/lighting designer. His work, manufactured by his company in Whakatu NZ (davidtrubridge.com), is sold all around the world. His designs have featured in countless international publications as an instigator of the trend of 'raw sophistication' and as an exemplar of environmentally responsible design. In 2008 the French magazine Express listed him as one of the top 15 designers in the world, and in 2012 the Pompidou Centre in Paris purchased his 'Icarus' installation for its permanent collection. In 2019 he became an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit. David loves boats, sailing and venturing out into wild places. He aims to bring some of that love for nature back into his work.

Richard Wood

Judge

Richard is a long time judge of the NZIPP (New Zealand Institute of Photography) Iris Awards and Head Judge of the International ‘Portrait Masters’ Awards. He has been given the distinction of Grand Master of Photography by the NZIPP and was awarded the title of ‘New Zealand Professional Photographer of the Year’ in 2011, 2014 and 2017. In 2019 he won the overall ‘Grand Award’ in Las Vegas at the Annual WPPI (Wedding and Portrait Photographers International) Awards. With a background in graphic design and photography, Richard is often found giving creative / art direction in the commercial photography world. He works within the genres of portrait and wedding photography throughout New Zealand and internationally, he is a photographic educator offering courses, workshops and mentorship to thousands of photographers around the world. Richard’s portfolio of work, including a stunning range of creative and illustrative images, can be found at richardwood.co.nz.