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Thursday, 5 February 2009 | Levent OZLER
Ellesse Launches International Design Competition
Ellesse, the Italian sportswear brand is celebrating its 50th anniversary next year with the launch of a design competition that will see it collaborate with leading design partners on an international scale. Born in Perugia, Italy in 1959, ellesse has been at the forefront of sportswear over the decades, its famous half tennis ball logo displayed on an innovative range of clothes worn by the world's leading tennis and sports stars. Now, to mark its half century, ellesse is putting a call to artists to create an ambitious and thought-provoking piece of design, fittingly inspired by the sport of tennis and the brand's values of "La Dolce Vita", living the "good life."
ellesse is working with partners including The London College of Fashion and The Istituto Italia Design in Perugia to inspire entrants for the competition. World renowned illustrator and typographer, Si Scott has collaborated on the project and will judge the winning entries alongside key ellesse and Pentland designer and directors. The prize is $6,000 and the work will be showcased at ellesse's 50th anniversary event that will take place in 2009 in the brand's birthplace of Italy.
The categories for the competition will range from fashion and textiles, right through to fine art, sculpture, street art, graphics and digital. This is a unique opportunity for practising designers, artists or art/design students aged 17 and above, from anywhere in the world, to produce a piece of art or design for a major lifestyle brand as it not only celebrates 50 years of iconic sports and leisurewear but the start of a whole new era for the company.
"With ellesse's synonymy with the sport of tennis, it is fitting that ellesse will be celebrating its half-century with an incredible tennis-inspired commemorative art design competition," said Richard Newcombe, President of Ellesse Ltd. "We hope the entrants are as excited about creating innovative ellesse-inspired ideas as we are about seeing them."
Under the umbrella of the Pentland brands family since 1993, ellesse was born in Perugia, Italy in 1959. The brand was the realisation of expert tailor Leonardo Servadio, whose passion for skiing inspired him to create revolutionary designs in skiwear throughout the 60s and 70s. The company was named after his initials (LS - Ellesse).
ellesse moved into tennis in the late 1970s and the brand's sharp Italian style made their range an immediate success. As a testimony to this, the graphic for the ellesse half-ball logo surmounting the company name was created. ellesse became one of the first brands to put its name on the outside of its clothes - a move copied by brands around the world ever since.
In the 1980s, ellesse sponsored the elite of the international tennis circuit including champions such as Chris Evert, Boris Becker and Guillermo Villas. ellesse also sponsored the New York marathon from 1984-1986 as well as the legendary Ferrari F1 team.
During the 1990s, the brand continued to develop sports technology with the creation of the 'Magic Air' jacket - a jacket which raises its inside temperature automatically. The company also continued its well-documented support of top international sporting talent such as Anna Kournikova and Olympic gold medallist skier Jean-Luc Cretier.
Unforgettable iconic products such as the simple tennis dress helped to modernise the face of competitive sportswear, and a passion for the avant-garde and a forward-thinking approach to product and communication gave brand founder Leonardo Servadio the dynamic edge that served to place the ellesse brand at the top of its game.
As the influence of Servadio's creative, artistic and forward-thinking approach to the original ellesse brand is still a driving force for what the company's values are today, it is fitting that ellesse is commemorating its 50th anniversary with a competition to find an innovative tennis-inspired piece of design.
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