GQ's Top New Male Designers to Do Gap Collection NONE of the designers chosen by GQ magazine as the best new talent in America this year are quite what you might envision as a designer for Gap. Among the group are established designers like Mark McNairy, maker of off-kilter preppy clothes for a number of labels, including his own, and newcomers like the twin brothers Shimon and Ariel Ovadia of the traditional-leaning Ovadia & Sons. There's also BLK DNM, the new jeans-focused line from the not-exactly-new designer Johan Lindeberg. GQ has made some changes to its six-year-old Best New Menswear Designers in America program, which seeks to promote designers of men's fashion in a way that's similar to the larger CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund. This year, the magazine will not name one winner but, rather, six finalists, who will design pieces for Gap this fall. Previous winners had designed products for Levi's or Dockers that were sold at Bloomingdale's in limited quantities. Jim Moore, the creative director of GQ, said the new partnership with Gap, which has previously worked with winners of the CFDA/Vogue prize on collaborations, will allow the designers to be exposed to a broader national audience. "There is a whole new generation of designers who are not only creative, but they want to sell," Mr. Moore said. This puts the clothes in everyone's backyard. Details about the collaboration aren't final, but it will likely consist of apparel and accessories sold this fall at Gap's larger stores, and online. Mark Breitbard, head of merchandising for Gap North America, said the collaborations are a way for Gap to maintain is image of casual American style. The new finalists are not exactly an edgy lot but may be able to provide fresh ideas at a time when Gap is contemplating its creative direction since parting ways with its head designer in 2011. So far, the designers have only presented ideas. "Mark McNairy came in with some really wacky stuff," Mr. Moore said. They embraced him. The other finalists are Ian Velardi, a former designer of Hart Schaffner Marx who started his own label last year; Todd Snyder, who started his line after leaving J. Crew in 2008; and Saturdays, the three-year-old surf-inspired line by Morgan Collett, Josh Rosen and Colin Tunstall.