The Italian fashion school Polimoda awards Emilie Wenckstern with the prize for ‘Best Collection 2026’. The 27-year-old German designer will receive the award for her collection ‘No longer human’, which she will present during the Polimoda Graduate Show 2026. The graduation event will take place on June 15 in the square in front of Polimoda’s Manifattura Campus in Florence. Wenckstern graduated from the Fashion School’s Bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design.
Central to the collection is a radical and at the same time very topical question: what happens to the body when it can be created, changed and constructed, even before it physically exists? With references to dolls, mannequins, sculptural figures and digital avatars, Wenckstern explores the boundary between the human and the artificial. She transforms the body into a surface, a construction and an image.
The premise of ‘No longer human’ is a question Wenckstern asked artificial intelligence: “If you had a body, would it still be human?” Based on this consideration, the collection thematizes how identity is constructed in the digital age. The skin becomes a surface, the body a design object. Wenckstern explores the boundary between the human and the artificial and asks not only what a body is, but also when it ceases to be one.
“We live in a time where bodies are created and modified. They can even exist before their physical presence. Identity becomes a construct, the skin turns into a surface. I wanted to explore this boundary and wonder not only what a body is, but also when it stops being one. For me, it’s not just about clothes. I want to create a world that inspires others and creates a dialogue between the body, the art and the garment,” Wenckstern explains.
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