Istituto Marangoni Shanghai has used its 2026 graduate show to not only explore self-discovery, but road-test the future of experimental retail.
Staged under the theme of Via Nomadis, which means the nomadic path, the showcase invited guests to actively participate in a narrative shaped by fashion, space, moving image and light.
The project is inspired by evolving industry realities, as luxury retail shifts from being purely transactional to a storytelling medium.
“Via Nomadis explores the evolving human identity across cultures and time,” said Nicolas Dumont, education director of Istituto Marangoni Shanghai. “Students transform research into history, migration, belonging and nomadic traditions into original fashion concepts through design experimentation, material development and personal creative expression. The collections question ideas of home, territory and permanence, presenting fashion as both a living archive of memory and a forward-looking language of cultural hybridity, resilience and creativity.”
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With support from the digital art design firm Temple of Light, guests were invited to explore the spaces, themed Infinity Room, Hallway and Immersive Room, each of which deciphered the Via Nomadis theme via a distinctive visual language.
“We have moved beyond the generation of fashion products alone,” said Lesley de Freitas, program leader of fashion. “Fashion education should celebrate individuality rather than conformity.” She underscored that the projects are conceived with market readiness in mind.
This year’s graduate runway show brought together the work of 10 graduating designers, including Ao Dongwei, Chen Qianyu, Chen Xinyan, Chen Yikun, Chu Jiayu, Liu Ziqi, Natlie Sung, Qin Ruiyang, Sun Jiaxue and Wang Yanfei.
European fabric house Scabal supplied materials for one of Qin Ruiyang’s looks, while SynMetabio, a bio-based leather maker, backed a full look by Liu Ziqi and accessories by Qin and Natlie Sung.
The evening also doubled as a platform for cross-cultural exchange. The Consulate of Italy in Shanghai named Liu Ziqi Best Designer of the Year 2026, while the Consulate of Belgium honored Qin with the Best Corporate Collaboration Award. The Consulate of France presented the Franco-Chinois Honorary Award to Zhang Han, an alumna of the ZSTU-Istituto Marangoni Joint College, whose collection — inspired by the traditional Chinese “square and circle,” modular forms and natural pigments — riffs on Eastern aesthetics through a contemporary, travel-inflected lens.
For Ying Ting Cheng, chief operating officer of Istituto Marangoni China and APAC, the staging is as much about curriculum as it is about spectacle.
“This year’s show reflects our belief that the purpose of fashion education is to cultivate transferable aesthetic thinking and a broader understanding of lifestyle,” Cheng said. “This foundational ability is a core competency for responding to the changes and possibilities of the AI era.”
