On October 23rd 2013, Prada announced the winners of the Prada Journal literary contest during an event at the NY Broadway Epicenter store which was transformed for the occasion into a contemporary “theater of conversation and exchange”.
The contest, launched by Prada in partnership with Giangiacomo Feltrinelli on 18 April 2013, drew participation of new talents from all over the world. Mattia Conti, Leisl Egan, Angel Mario Fernández, Sarah Harris Wallman and Peng Yang are the five winners who will receive the amount of 5000 Euro each.
In a world of images, Prada emphasizes the strength of words: words sharply focused through the lenses of the Prada Journal optical collection. Thus, the glasses become a privileged tool to explore the surrounding reality and reformulate it in words.
Prada and Feltrinelli will then publish the winner’s short stories as a digital book which will be available on prada.com before the end of 2013.
The event began at 7pm with readings by Jonathan Ames, Zoe Kazan, Anthony Mackie, Jay McInerney and Gary Shteyngart who lent their voices to the winning stories. Oliver Platt acted as master of ceremonies. DJ Jeffrey Tonnesen animated the cocktail till late. Guests included Mamie Gummer, Paul Dano, Giovanna Battaglia, Zani Gugelmann, Christopher Bollen, Sofia Sanchez Barrenchea, Jessica Joffe, Meredith Melling, Michael Avedon, Valerie Boster and Olivier Rizzo.