Nov. 2024, Frankfurt am Main. The winners of the 2025 Heimtextil University Contest are Kateryna Basiuk, Eszter Nagy, and Birke-Katharina Weber. Their innovative textile solutions on the subjects of color, light, and sound protection were impressive. Approximately twice as many entries were submitted to the contest in 2025 as the previous year. The chosen projects will be on display at the largest home and contract textile trade show in the world, which will take place in Frankfurt from January 14–17, 2025.
What textile solutions are in store for the upcoming generation? On a global scale, the Heimtextil University Contest highlights the inventive potential of universities and young people. This is favorably received: For the current edition, 44 students from 12 nations presented consistently excellent ideas. When compared to the University Contest 2024, the quantity of submissions has nearly doubled. Germany, Finland, France, India, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Pakistan, Sweden, Switzerland, Slovakia, Slovenia, and Ukraine were among the countries that submitted applications. The winners can take advantage of the platform’s worldwide reach and give a free presentation of their projects and universities to an international audience at Heimtextil 2025 in hall 3.0.
The tremendous international response to the Heimtextil University Contest makes me very happy. Only in networks that come together from a variety of viewpoints can we solve transformations. For this reason, we are highlighting students and universities in particular as catalysts for innovation,” explains Bettina Bär, Director of Heimtextil.
Heimtextil University Contest 2025 at a glance
Three winners of the international Heimtextil University Contest 2025 made their presence known with thematically compelling responses: In “Silent Canvas,” Kateryna Basiuk of Lucerne University in Switzerland demonstrates how discarded yarns may be used to create visually appealing sound absorbers, drawing inspiration from moth wings. Eszter Nagy from Finland’s Aalto University is concentrating on the subject of light. Her “Lumen Collection” focuses on experimenting with woven fabrics that act as membranes that move between light and space. Additionally, in her research project “MycoColors,” Birke-Katharina Weber (Weißensee Kunsthochschule Berlin, Germany) explores a number of options for obtaining sustainable pigments from mushrooms.
Six experts from academia and industry in related fields comprise the worldwide expert jury. Svenja Bernhold, Laetitia Forst, Saman Khodabandeh, Tina Moor, Maarit Salolainen, and Lutz Walter were the members this year. An summary of the 2025 jury members can be found here.
The winners of the Heimtextil University Contest 2025
Kateryna Basiuk, Lucerne University, Switzerland – Silent Canvas
Kateryna Basiuk examines how discarded yarns can be utilized to create circular sound absorbers while enhancing their visual appeal and aesthetic qualities in her project “Silent Canvas.” She draws inspiration from the microstructures of moth wings that absorb sound. Her main method for using discarded materials to recreate these natural forms is knitting. SDG 12.5, which calls for reducing waste generation through reuse, is addressed by the project. The piece is a component of the HSLU Design, Film & Art’s Products & Textiles Research Group project.
One important method for recreating the sound-absorbing microstructures of moth wings is knitting.
Eszter Nagy, Aalto University, Finland – Lumen Collection
Sustainability and light: Eszter Nagy’s “Lumen Collection” features fabrics made from organic materials that act as barriers between space and light. Her two major works were produced using the cotton-warp industrial machine at Aalto University. Eszter Nagy tested fil-coupe and multi-layered constructions to improve light transmission because of the yarn’s thickness and density. She experimented with hand-woven structures during the design phase and gave them various treatments: She uses linen wefts to weave a two-layer structure in “Lilla,” which, when illuminated, display their lengthy floats in the cloth. “Duo” is made as a single double-woven fabric that is subsequently divided using the fil-coupe method. Wool is used to weave the pattern, which fixes the cut wefts’ position after washing and drying. When layered as a curtain, the two textiles made in this manner produce reciprocal negative patterns that produce a whimsical look.
Membrane between light and space: Lumen collection from Membrane
Birke-Katharina Weber, Weißensee Kunsthochschule Berlin, Germany – MycoColors
“MycoColors” honors the vibrant realm of mushrooms: As a potential environmentally beneficial substitute for synthetic dyes, Birke-Katharina Weber’s research study explores novel techniques for obtaining textile dyes from mushrooms. To create a variety of sustainable color possibilities for the textile industry, Birke-Katharina Weber is investigating several fungal species and extraction techniques. This is accomplished by the controlled growth of mycelia in bioreactors and extractive methods for extracting pigments from the fruiting bodies of extant fungus species. Their goal is to produce an ever-expanding spectrum of colors that may be applied to different materials.
MycoColors: The colour of mushrooms as a sustainable alternative
