Istituto Marangoni London teams up with Grace Wales Bonner

Istituto Marangoni (IM) London is partnering with British designer Grace Wales Bonner of menswear label Wales Bonner as per a press release shared by the school.

Wales Bonner will become one of the school’s new mentors, joining an impressive list of previous mentors at the school which includes British journalist Katie Grand who was last year’s mentor for the London campus, and Olivier Rousteing of Balmain for the Paris school.

As part of the partnership, the British menswear designer will share her professional experience in the fashion industry with the London students in a series of masterclasses and workshops.

A mentor at Istituto Marangoni also introduces special guest lectures and provides hands-on feedback for students.

Grace Wales Bonner graduated from Central Saint Martins at the University of the Arts London (UAL) in 2014 and launched her menswear label Wales Bonner shortly afterwards.

Most recently, the London-based fashion designer won the Independent British Brand Award at The Fashion Awards 2022.

Exclusive internship opportunity with Grace Wales Bonner

During her mentorship, students will get the exclusive opportunity to work on showcasing a fashion collection in London and Paris as part of an internship, by supporting Wales Bonner at her Paris Fashion Week show in February 2023.

Grace is Head of the Department of Fashion Design at the University of Applied Arts, Vienna. She has previously taught as an associate lecturer at Central Saint Martins, London and given lectures at Parsons School of Design in New York City.

Grace Wales Bonner has received numerous awards including Emerging Menswear Designer at the British Fashion Awards 2015, the LVMH Young Designer Prize (2016), she won the British Fashion Council/ Vogue Designer Fashion Fund in 2019, and was named CFDA International Men's Designer of the Year in 2021.

In 2019, Grace was invited by Maria Grazia Chiuri to collaborate with Dior on the silhouette for its Resort 2020 collection. In addition, she has collaborated with brands including Adidas Originals, Savile Row Tailors Anderson & Sheppard, Charvet, Manolo Blahnik and Swarovski.

“I am looking forward to supporting the development of the students at Istituto Marangoni and to sharing the realities expected of emerging design professionals,” Grace Wales Bonner said in a statement.

Valérie Berdah-Levy, director of IMM London added: “It is with great honour and admiration that we announce the collaboration of the London School with Grace Wales Bonner on this inspiring creative mentorship programme.”

“We are excited for the students to have the opportunity to master their craft alongside such an influential figure for young designers and fashion moguls worldwide,” she continued.

“Grace's time and motivation to drive new talent is empowering and inspiring to watch in action. I cannot wait to witness the abundance of creativity and passion that will result from this outstanding collaboration of great young minds,” the London school director concluded.