Marc Jacobs Signs Up for Jury Duty

American designer agrees to once again helm design competition in Berlin.

Marc Jacobs has signed on for a second year as head patron and jury member of Peek & Cloppenburg’s Designer for Tomorrow competition in Berlin. Jacobs took on the patron role last July, and cast what many suspected was the deciding vote for Alexandra Kiesel, a graduate of Berlin’s Weissensee School of Art (http://www.kh-berlin.de) who went big on color-blocked separates as well as strong shoulders in her winning presentation. She’ll stage her first solo runway show under the DFT banner at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Berlin on Jan. 18.

Peek and Cloppenburg, a leading German specialty store chain, said Jacobs would be in Berlin several times this year to help the final five candidates in the 2012 competition prepare for next July’s group show. As for the multi-tasking designer, he said he decided to continue his support for Designer for Tomorrow because it is an “authentic award and the focus is on the designer.” (WWD)