The winners of the awards, which are organised by MullenLowe Group in partnership with Central Saint Martins, were announced in a ceremony on Wednesday. The overall winner, runners up and recipients of the Unilever #Unstereotype Award and Country & Townhouse Regeneration Award were chosen by a panel of expert judges, while the YourNOVA ‘People’s Choice’ Award was chosen by a public vote.

Jose Miguel Sokoloff, Global President, MullenLowe Group Creative Council said: “The world is accelerating at an unprecedented pace and it is incredible to see how these students have responded through art and innovation. I am amazed by the ingenuity of the students, and I am confident that the winning work represents the very best of cutting-edge creativity in the world right now.”

From 1,300 graduating students, just six MullenLowe NOVA Awards have been given to those whose work represents our mission. From using human hair waste to create personalised prostheses to culture-rich craftmanship, these stand-out projects are some of the biggest and best ideas in the world right now! Take a look at the winners below:

2023 MullenLowe NOVA Award Winner: Liz Ebengo, MA Material Futures, CONTINUED

Liz impressed the judges with her project, CONTINUED, which examines the sociocultural cost of adapting to climate change and our complicity in cultural erosion by utilising the capabilities of DNA storage to encrypt a library of sound and film.

During her research, Liz discovered the tale of the last female cultivator of musa balbisiana, a type of wild banana with seeds, on the remote island of Épi. Immortalising her song in the DNA of the very plant she cultivates isn’t only a tribute to the resilient spirit, vibrant heritage and unique contributions of Épi’s women, but also a celebration of the rich cultural tapestry of Vanuatu.

Speaking about what’s next for her, Liz said “I am a narrative designer so I have to continue telling stories and I think I’m so aware that all I want to do is tell stories for the rest of my life and I hope the stories I tell point people to justice”.

As overall winner of the 2023 MullenLowe NOVA Awards, Liz will receive a cash prize to help pursue her practice.

2023 MullenLowe NOVA Award Runners Up: George Harvey, MA Fine Art (Digital), Entities

George’s project ‘Entities’ is an audiovisual exploration into our individual perception of reality. Examining the two fundamentals of life – energy and time – ‘Entities’ investigates our unique understanding of the conscious mind and our respective interpretation of existence.

Speaking about the inspiration behind his project, George said: “Between 2020 and 2023 I lost six family members including both of my parents and that completely changed my perception of reality and time as well, so I started to try and understand what this funny thing called life is”.

2023 MullenLowe NOVA Award Runners Up: Bocen Zhou, BA Jewellery Design, Tight Knit

Bocen’s collection, ‘Tight Knit’, is a series of wearable jewellery, crocheted with silver thread, inspired by the hand-knitted sweaters her grandma made for her as a child. By using crocheting techniques to combine silver and wool threads, Bocen hopes to reflect and explore complex intergenerational dynamics.

In Bocen’ work, wool symbolises the love of elders – it’s soft and warm. In contrast to sweaters, silver is cold and prickly. The contrast of these two materials reflects the conflicts between different generations. When the wearer puts on the sweater, the seemingly soft but icy metal touches the skin, revealing these differences and conflicts. Bocen hopes the series will serve as a bridge, allowing generations to better understand each other, communicate better and embrace each other with love.

2023 Unilever Unstereotype Award Winner: Luke Talbot, BA Product & Industrial Design, My Powerbank

Being a lifelong Londoner, Luke has witnessed first hand how the city uses design to deter people experiencing homelessness. Rather than contribute to the discomfort and marginalisation of others, Luke set out to create something that would have a tangibly positive impact on the lives of homeless individuals. From conversations with people experiencing homelessness, Luke discovered that mobile phones serve as precious lifelines. However, the lack of consistent power severely hampers their ability to utilise essential digital services, including banking and social aid. To address this pressing issue, reduce the digital divide and empower the homeless population, he designed ‘My Powerbank’.

‘My Powerbank’ is a powerbank that can be charged for free by attaching it to the frame of any stationary Santander bicycle. It works using a dynamo that connects to the chain of the bike, which, if peddled backwards, engages the chain and generates power which is stored in the power bank’s batteries.

Also congratulations to Soe-Myat Noe who was highly commended for her project ‘We Are Not Ones Who Say Much’ in this category.

2023 Country & Townhouse Regeneration Award Winner: Arianna Pezzano, MA Material Futures, BioProsthesis: from our body, for our body

Patients experience physical changes during chemotherapy, with hair loss being one of the first moments when their identity and femininity is challenged. Arianna’s award-winning project, Bio Prosthesis, aims to help people with breast cancer in a way which truly embodies the spirit of regeneration.

Using Arianna’s method, Keratin is extracted from the hair lost during treatment and is then utilised in the creation of a tailor-made prosthesis for the patient, following a mastectomy or lumpectomy. This process enables the patient to regain a sense of wholeness, with the keratin used in the prosthesis serving as a replacement for the loss of their breast. This symbolically reunites the first loss of hair with the body in the form of a prosthesis, and facilitates the acceptance process and psychological healing.

With her project Arianna hopes to help patients heal, saying “I wanted to give these patients something back, something that they lost during the therapy and after the surgery to kind of build themselves back together again”.

MullenLowe NOVA Award winner Liz Ebengo also a received a commendation for her project in this category.

2023 YourNOVA ‘People’s Choice’ Award Winner: Asa Briet Brattaberg, BA Fashion Design, Tales Told in Tangles

Coming from two small islands with a rich culture of craftsmanship, handcraft is a part of Asa’s nature. By using techniques and materials from her heritage, Asa aims to hold onto memories and connect to the past. In Tales Told In Tangles, the threads of the past are reflected in the threads of the designs. Memories entangled in previously owned garments, together with the rich quality of the craftsmanship, are both central to Asa’s work.

For her collection, Tales Told in Tangles, Asa has made every piece of textile by hand, using a zero-waste weaving technique. Asa incorporates old shirts from her grandfather, who recently passed away, into her designs and uses hand-spun wool. Speaking about her process, Asa said: “I was taught from a young age to work with my hands and see quality in my surroundings. So last summer I got wool from my grandparents who are sheep farmers in Iceland and I started to spin my own yarn. With the rhythmic movements of the spinning wheel, time became tangible in my hands, so I really wanted with his collection to make garments where you can see time my designs”.

A huge congratulations to our winning students! Head over to the NOVA website to check out the award-winning projects.