Firenze The School of Fashion & Art

Istituto Marangoni Firenze Alumna honoured by an international jury of leading fashion industry figures appointed by Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana

Istituto Marangoni Firenze celebrates a new and prestigious achievement on the international fashion scene. Matilde Bonechi, a Fashion Design & Accessories Alumna, has been awarded the Fashion Design Award at the twelfth edition of Milano Moda Graduate 2026, the initiative promoted by Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana that every year showcases and supports the most promising emerging talents from Italy’s leading fashion schools.

Held at the iconic Rotonda della Besana in Milan and included in the official calendar of the Spring/Summer 2027 shows, Milano Moda Graduate is one of the industry’s most significant platforms connecting education, creativity and fashion business. The event offers Italy’s most talented students the opportunity to present their work to an audience of industry professionals, companies, media representatives and opinion leaders, fostering dialogue between academic training and the contemporary fashion system.

Among the six finalists selected in the Fashion Design category, Matilde Bonechi stood out for the quality and depth of her design research, ultimately securing the Fashion Design Award. The projects were evaluated by an international jury composed of some of the most influential figures in the global fashion industry.

Chaired by Luca Lisandroni, CEO and Executive Board Member of Brunello Cucinelli, the jury brought together leading professionals representing every facet of the fashion ecosystem, from retail and buying to investment, communication and industry institutions. Members included Beppe Angiolini for Camera Buyer Italia, Roberta Benaglia of Style Capital, Mariella Elia of Rinascente, Caterina Ercoli of Antonioli, Rodolphe Nantas of The Webster, Tommaso Rossetti of Fratelli Rossetti, alongside internationally renowned voices in fashion culture and communication such as Suzy Menkes, Sara Sozzani Maino, Carlo Capasa, Michelle Francine Ngonmo, Kulsum Shadab Wahab, and many other prominent industry professionals.

The composition of the jury underscores Milano Moda Graduate’s role as a strategic platform where emerging talents meet the key decision-makers shaping the future of the global fashion industry.

“La Forma del Sentire”: A Dialogue Between Heritage, Denim and Textile Innovation

With her collection “La Forma del Sentire” (The Shape of Feeling), Matilde Bonechi develops a project that explores the relationship between tradition, memory and contemporary design through an in-depth investigation of materials and garment construction techniques.

The creative journey begins with Umberto Eco’s essay Il Pensiero Lombare and evolves through a study of menswear silhouettes from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. At the heart of the collection is denim, examined as an everyday fabric capable of evolving over time and acquiring new meanings through wear and use.

The research is further enriched by references to the traditional clothing of the Aran Islands fishermen, inspiring experiments in knitwear and three-dimensional textures. The encounter between these worlds led to the development of an innovative hybrid textile, handwoven on a loom and designed to merge denim and knitwear into a single material language. By using wool yarns to recreate the characteristic texture of denim, Bonechi constructs a collection in which heritage and innovation coexist, offering a contemporary interpretation of craftsmanship.

The result is a body of work that combines technical expertise, textile experimentation and strong design sensitivity, qualities that allowed the collection to stand out among the finalists and earn the competition’s highest recognition.

A Continuing Path of Excellence

The recognition received by Matilde Bonechi is part of a broader trajectory of success that has seen several students from Istituto Marangoni Firenze distinguished at Milano Moda Graduate in recent years.

In 2025, Giulia Lin, a third-year Fashion Design & Accessories student, received the prestigious Special Jury Mention. In 2023, Fashion Design student Alessia Ancillotti was awarded the YKK Prize, a recognition dedicated to innovation in accessories and fastening systems.

Matilde Bonechi’s achievement adds a new chapter to this journey, reaffirming the value of research, experimentation and industry engagement at the core of Istituto Marangoni Firenze’s educational approach.

With “La Forma del Sentire,” Bonechi presents a reflection on the relationship between memory, materials and contemporaneity, transforming references rooted in tradition into a personal exploration of the future of fashion design.