Photos – Tianyi Li ©
Tianyi Li, the British-Chinese designer who won the second edition of Istituto Marangoni’s mentoring project, I’M ALUMNI COLLECTIONS ®EVOLUTION, will present her SS 19 collection “Light & Space” in the Sala delle Cariatidi of the Palazzo Reale on 20 September at 4:30 pm, during Milan’s fashion week.
For the young designer, it will be the first important occasion to reveal to the public her stylistic signature and technical abilities coupled with an intense creativity, expressed in a collection that explores the concepts of light, space and movement.
Tianyi Li showed daring, imagining soft and vibrant volumes with unusual cuts, striped surfaces and natural folds, drawing inspiration from the work of the artist Lucio Fontana and paper engineers Richard Sweeney and Matt Shlian. For Tianyi her first collection represents an “immaculate” canvas on which she makes clean cuts and simulations that exist on the border between 2D and 3D.
From a careful study of pleating and folding techniques are born new textures, suitable for building pieces that merge deconstructed tailored jackets with voluminous baby dolls, in soft pastel colours and embellished with beads, sequins and pearls.
An important debut, therefore, made possible thanks to a one-of-a-kind project that offers guidance and support, sponsored by Istituto Marangoni, which each year gives the chance to one Alumnus to create their own collection and present it with a show during Milan’s Fashion Week in September.
Tianyi Li was chosen for the originality of her S/S19 collection, for her creative avant-garde signature style and for the technical skills that arise from her professional experience. Upon completing the Master in Fashion Design Womenswear at Istituto Marangoni London with honours in 2016, Tianyi Li became a Design Assistant at Éthologie and later at Ellis Bridals, after having also worked in other prestigious fashion houses such as Jasper Garvida, Gareth Pugh and Alexander McQueen. Opportunities that gave her a deep knowledge of the design, research and development phases of new collections and professional experience, which were important in the jury’s final selection.
The project is part of a series of activities and promotional events that support the I’M Alumni Community of Istituto Marangoni, an international and multicultural élite made up of more than 40,000 professionals who share the School’s values and savoir-faire, thanks to which former students can take part in ongoing trainings, find new job opportunities and expand their own social and professional network.
The importance of the community can also be seen in the success of the many Alumni who will be showing during Fashion Week, a prestigious venue for Alberto Zambelli, Ricostru, Brognano, Moschino, Daizy Shely, Paola Cademartori, Attico and many others.
