A defining milestone in New Zealand fashion has been given a fresh visual identity by emerging designer and Whitecliffe student Alyssa Gorshkova.
The third-year Bachelor of Design + Digital Media student is the designer behind the winning 25th anniversary logo for New Zealand Fashion Week Presented by Giltrap Group. Her design was selected to represent the event’s history, creative community and continued evolution.
For Alyssa, seeing her work become part of one of Aotearoa’s most recognised creative events has been an exciting and meaningful opportunity.
Created specifically to commemorate 25 years of New Zealand Fashion Week, Alyssa’s logo brings the numbers two and five together in one continuous, connected form.
“The idea behind the logo was to represent how design communities integrate and how designers keep evolving. Design and fashion are not just one thing; they keep building on each other and becoming something new. By integrating the two to create the five, I wanted the logo to reflect that connection and evolution,” Alyssa explained.
The concept reflects connection, unity and community, qualities that have remained central to New Zealand Fashion Week throughout its history. The result is a contemporary anniversary mark that acknowledges the event’s legacy while looking confidently towards its future.
The simplicity of the final design is supported by careful thought and refinement. It needed to work as more than an anniversary graphic; it had to complement the established New Zealand Fashion Week identity and remain clear and recognisable across digital platforms, printed material, event signage and merchandise.
For an emerging designer, working within the requirements of a major national brand offered an important opportunity to apply classroom learning to a highly visible, real-world project.
Liam Taylor, Executive Director of New Zealand Fashion Week, said Alyssa’s design reflected the values at the heart of the event.
“Alyssa’s design beautifully captures the spirit of what New Zealand Fashion Week has always been about — connection, community and creativity. Seeing emerging talent like hers contribute to this 25th anniversary milestone is exactly why we value our partnership with Whitecliffe so deeply. We can’t wait to see what she does next.”
Alyssa’s achievement demonstrates how design can connect creative expression with communication, strategy and commercial application.
Through her studies at Whitecliffe, she has developed experience across visual communication and digital media while building the confidence to explore her own creative identity. The New Zealand Fashion Week project gave her the opportunity to use those skills in response to a professional brief, balancing her individual perspective with the needs of an established industry event.
“As a student, it means quite a lot to me because my work is now outside the classroom. I’m beginning to put myself and my work out into the industry,” Alyssa said.
Whitecliffe CEO Dr Fay Amaral said Alyssa’s achievement demonstrated the value of giving students opportunities to apply their learning within professional environments.
“Alyssa’s achievement is a great example of how students can take the knowledge and skills developed through their learning at Whitecliffe and apply them confidently within a professional workspace and real client brief. The Bachelor of Design + Digital Media is designed to prepare students for exactly these opportunities, combining creative and technical capability with critical thinking, meaningful industry connection and the confidence to respond to a rapidly changing creative sector. We are incredibly proud to see Alyssa’s work recognised on such a significant national platform and to see her demonstrate what it means to be future ready.”
Having her work selected also provided Alyssa with valuable recognition at an important stage in her development as a designer.
Her anniversary logo has become part of the public-facing identity of New Zealand Fashion Week, allowing her work to be seen by designers, media, industry professionals and audiences throughout Aotearoa.
Whitecliffe is proud to be the Official Education Partner of New Zealand Fashion Week and to support opportunities that connect students with the wider creative industries.
This partnership creates meaningful pathways for emerging designers to engage with professional environments, contribute fresh ideas and experience how creative work operates beyond the classroom.
Alyssa’s success reflects the creativity, perspective and ambition shaping the next generation of Aotearoa design. It also shows what can happen when emerging talent is trusted with opportunities to contribute to significant cultural and industry moments.
As New Zealand Fashion Week celebrates 25 years, Alyssa’s logo provides a fitting symbol for the occasion: connected to the event’s history, grounded in community and designed with the future in mind.
For Alyssa, the experience represents more than winning a design competition. It is an opportunity to contribute to the visual history of New Zealand fashion and to see her work operating on a national platform while she is still completing her degree.
It is an achievement that will become an important part of her growing professional portfolio and an exciting step towards the creative career ahead of her.
Whitecliffe congratulates Alyssa on this outstanding accomplishment and looks forward to seeing where her creativity takes her next.
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