NCAD Student Clodagh Leavy wins the Brown Thomas Arnotts ‘Designer to Watch’
NCAD Student Clodagh Leavy wins the Brown Thomas Arnotts ‘Designer to Watch’ Bursary Award 2025
PRESS RELEASE
Friday 30th May 2025
NCAD and Brown Thomas Arnotts mark 10 years of collaboration for the ‘Designer to Watch’ Bursary Award
NCAD fashion design student Clodagh Leavy from County Meath has been named as this year’s winner of the Brown Thomas Arnotts ‘Designer to Watch’ Bursary Award 2025. Clodagh is a final year fashion design student in the National College of Art and Design (NCAD), and the award was made based on the strength of her collection titled ‘Anna’s Studio’.
_s_.jpg)
As the winner of this year’s award, Clodagh Leavy will receive a bursary worth € 4,000 and the opportunity to display her collection at Brown Thomas Arnotts this summer.
Announcing the winner at NCAD, Darren Feeney, Head of Art Direction and Creative, Brown Thomas Arnotts, said: “This year marks a decade of collaboration with NCAD, and we’re proud to continue championing the incredible design talent emerging in Ireland. It’s always a privilege to witness the creativity, originality, and vision that comes through from the students each year. This year’s standard was exceptionally high, with fifteen outstanding design students showcasing their work — each bringing a fresh perspective to the future of fashion.
“The standard from this year’s fifteen finalists was incredibly high, but Clodagh Leavy’s collection truly stood out. Inspired by her grandmother’s art, she presented beautifully hand-painted garments that showcased a confident use of colour, volume, and texture. The variety of materials and personal storytelling was reflected both in her creativity and skills. We’re delighted to showcase her creations in our store this summer and look forward to supporting the next chapter of her creative journey. "
_s.jpg)
Professor Sarah Glennie, Director of NCAD, commented: “NCAD is deeply grateful to Brown Thomas Arnotts for their visionary, long-standing commitment to supporting NCAD Fashion Graduates. Their support provides an invaluable platform for an NCAD graduate each year, and the legacy of this 10-year long bursary will resonate in Irish design for years to come.”
Speaking at the announcement of the Bursary, Angela O’Kelly, Head of Design for Body and Environment at NCAD, said: “At NCAD’s Fashion Design programme, we are proud to mark a decade of collaboration with Brown Thomas Arnotts supporting emerging talent and shaping a more thoughtful, innovative future for fashion.
FINAL
“At NCAD, we have a deep commitment to cultural engagement, sustainability, and interdisciplinary practice. Through an ethos of ‘thinking through making,’ our fashion students are encouraged to develop distinct design identities grounded in material knowledge, critical inquiry, and global awareness.
“This year our students are combining heritage techniques with contemporary technologies to create unique, forward-thinking designs. The designs are both deeply personal and globally relevant — championing craftsmanship, material and cultural intelligence, and storytelling.
“I want to congratulate Clodagh Leavy on winning the 2025 Brown Thomas Arnotts bursary with her exceptional design and wish her well in their future career.”
_s_.jpg)
Speaking about her collection, winner Clodagh Leavy, NCAD final year Fashion Design student, commented:
“I’m delighted to have been chosen for the ‘Designer to Watch’ Bursary – ‘Anna’s Studio’ is a heartfelt tribute to my granny, Anna-Marie Leavy, who was a watercolour artist. This collection is not just inspired by her work, but by the relationship we had and the deep influence she had on my own creative journey.
“Her studio was a room filled with colour, texture, chaos and stories. I’ve translated that intimate, lived-in beauty into garments that honour her artistic process and the vibrant energy she brought to everything she touched. Each piece is infused with elements drawn from her studio and wardrobe - using decorative techniques like textile painting, embroidery, quilting, smocking, and elastication to bring her world to life through texture and detail.
“‘Anna’s Studio’ is a celebration of colour and creativity that captures the essence of my granny’s bright personality. It invites the wearer to experience a sense of joy, nostalgia,
and bold self-expression, just as she always encouraged in me.”
Members of the public can view Clodagh’s work and all NCAD graduates’ collections and designs, across all disciplines, as part of NCAD WORKS 2025 at the National College of Art and Design graduate showcase. It runs from Friday, 6th to Saturday, 14th June.
ENDS