International Hats Art Awards 14th & 15th Editions

The 14th edition of the International Hats Art Competition, held by the Atelier-Musée du Chapeau in Chazelles-sur-Lyon, France, was organized around the theme of "Renewal", a theme chosen in connection with the museum's 40th anniversary, and awarded 10 prizes and 1 Public prize. The well-known British milliner Stephen Jones served as president of the jury in 2023, continuing his long association with the competition. The biennial event gathers designers from across the world as part of the effort to safeguard hat-making and millinery savoir-faire, while also strengthening the Atelier-Musée du Chapeau's role as an essential destination for hat designers and contributing to the renewal of creation in the field. The 15th edition, themed "The art and manner," 2025, saw 126 designers from 19 countries take part. Participants were invited to propose creations inspired by a work of art, reinterpret an existing artwork, or imagine a hat where none had previously existed — exploring the place of fashion among the arts and how hats can themselves be wearable works of art. The jury of professionals, chaired for the fifth time by Stephen Jones, awarded 10 prizes and 1 Public prize. 88 of the competing creations were displayed in an original scenography designed by Marion Lyonnais, featuring large arches of Drop Paper® over five metres high. The exhibition notably showcased a strong preference for painterly inspiration, ranging from the Middle Ages with Hieronymus Bosch to Pierre Soulages, via Hokusai and Sonia Delaunay.