Tex+ Supporting New Textile Talent Returns to London

Britain’s premier platform for emerging textile designers is back after a five-year gap. The cream of textile talent emerging from colleges across the UK were given their own TEX+ showcase last week in London at Chelsea College of Arts.

Formerly known as Texprint and then TexSelect, the event was revived this year under the new name of TEX+. In 2019, TexSelect took the difficult decision to close as key personnel retired and funding became challenging.

TEX+ aims to bridge the gap between education and the textile industry by offering mentorship, internships and business connections. TEX+ also maintains a networking platform for professionals and recent graduates, creating a supportive community for young designers.

Image courtesy of Bonnie Magee. Image courtesy of   Scarlett Farrer. 

Over 50 years, in its previous incarnations, TEX+ has interviewed more than 10,000 young textile designers and supported more than 1,250 to make new connections and find their start in the industry. 

The revived event, at Chelsea College of Arts (10-12 July 2024) featured 25 young graduate textile designers. Seven prizes and five TEX+ accolades were awarded to nine of the selected designers, each bringing an engaging, creative vision to the textile design landscape.

We spoke to some of the prize winners, who were universally enthusiastic about the benefits of the revived showcase.

Image: Rock Lobster by Frederica Marlow.

Bonnie Magee, Sanderson Art in Industry Trust Prize and the TEX+ Arts Award 
After graduating from the Glasgow School of Art, Bonnie learned about the TEX+ from her tutors. She won the prestigious Sanderson Art in Industry Trust Prize and the TEX+ Arts Award. Reflecting, Bonnie said: “With the Sanderson Prize, you receive prize money that I am putting towards getting an overlocker, which will help me carry on without the university’s facilities.”

Frederica Marlow, TEX+ Industry Award 
Frederica Marlow is a textile designer who explores woven textiles with bold and engaging colours. She studied at Chelsea College of Arts and the Fashion Institute of Technology: TEX+ has proven to be the logical next step to further her development. After winning the TEX+ Industry Award, she said: “I’m so over the moon… shell-shocked. But I’m so proud of myself.”

Image courtesy of Jeannie Malcolm. 

Jeannie Malcolm, Liberty Fabrics Studio Award 
Jeannie Malcolm, from Falmouth University, creates mixed media textiles. A recipient of the Liberty Fabrics Studio Award, which offers three-months’ mentorship, TEX+ has the potential to be life-changing for the young designer. “It has been amazing,” she said. “I have a lot of narrative throughout my work which works well with the Liberty Fabrics brand.”

Jenny Hind, Silk Bureau Prize [image 79]
Jenny Hind specialises in print for interiors, with each piece hand drawn. She was inspired by Beatrice Rothschild’s pink mansion in the south of France for her eclectic prints that won her the Silk Bureau Prize of print and materials. “This has been really good exposure. I have made loads of new connections,” she said.

Image courtesy of Jenny Hind.

Roisin Spence, The Mills Fabrica Prize and TEX+ Impact Award [image 70, 94 with TEX+ trustees Joanna Bowring and Katie Greenyer]
Glasgow-based Roisin Spence, a fashion and textiles student, drew on her connections with nature and the environment for her TEX+ showcase. “I won the TEX+ Impact Award and The Mills Fabrica Prize. Such amazing opportunities. With the prize you are offered desk space in Mills Fabrica’s hub for textile innovators for six months, which is incredible.” 

Scarlett Farrer, Helga Goldman Prize and the TEX+ Collaboration Award 
Woven textiles student Scarlett Farrer shares how important this experience has been for her. Through TEX+, Scarlett received funds through the Helga Goldman Prize and the TEX+ Collaboration Prize. She said “This just means so much. It means I can set up my own studio and invest in a loom. I’ve really got a good start to my own business.”

Image courtesy of Nikki Kewley. 

Nikki Kewley, Pentland Brands Prize
After graduating from Aberdeen’s Gray School of Art, London has been an amazing change of pace for Nikki Kewley. "I have always loved colour, but the print room has always been where I ended up. Receiving the Pentland Brands Prize paid placement has made me sure of my future in the industry," she said. 

Katie Pope, The Pattern Cloud Prize
Falmouth University graduate Katie Pope’s print designs evoke memories of the Cotswold countryside and her fascination of circus history and costume, observed through vintage programmes and photographs. Katie, whose drawing and painting skills were praised by the selection panellists, has won a platform to sell her work for a year through the Pattern Cloud Prize. 

Image courtesy of Katie Pope.

Xiangyi Kong, TEX+ Alchemy Award 
Xiangyi Kong has found a new community with TEX+ after graduating from the London College of Fashion with a degree in knitwear. She hopes the Alchemy prize will broaden her network further: “I am so excited, and so grateful. It provides a good opportunity to meet more people in the industry.

Find out more about Tex+
www.texplus.org