When the International Textile Market Association launched the student design competition, Virginia Jackson was very instrumental in establishing the core fundamentals, which continue to play a major role in the program.

Submitted designs are to be created for residential upholstery applications in Dobby, Jacquard and Print categories.

For Guidelines information on the Design Competition please click here.

Design students from three universities swept the award categories in the annual Virginia Jackson Design Competition, sponsored by the International Textile Market Association (ITMA).

The awards recognize college students in textile design whose submitted work is evaluated for aesthetic form, ability to be manufactured and applicability to furniture products. Each winner receives a monetary prize, and each first-place winner’s school also receives $1,000. The first-place winner in each category will be flown to Showtime and honored Sunday evening, December 6.

The winning designs will be displayed in the Suites at Market Square during Showtime, December 7-9, in High Point.

“The submittals this year surpassed previous competitions in terms of quantity and quality of designs, especially in the dobby and jacquard categories,” said ITMA Director Catherine Morsell. “Part of our mission is to encourage creative individuals to enter the home furnishings textile field, and it is inspiring to see the depth of talent and interest in this industry.”

The judges were Sara Gray, Design Consultant Sourcing; Kim Grimsley and Allison Hocker, Tietex Interiors; Laura Levinson, Valdese Weavers; and Wesley Mancini, owner of Wesley Mancini Collection.

Of the 64 total entries received from six colleges, these are the 2009 winners in each category:

Jacquard
1st Place (tie):
2nd Place:
3rd Place:
Honorable Mention:

The design competition is named for the late Virginia Jackson, a longtime industry veteran who was instrumental in launching the contest in 1995.

Founded in 1990, the ITMA is a non-profit trade association that produces Showtime for its member companies, mostly home furnishings textile manufacturers. Held twice a year, Showtime is recognized as the largest textile show in the Western Hemisphere.

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