Paris Menswear Fashion Week has got even more exciting since Istituto Marangoni announcement that IM alumni Armando Costa and Ruben Bissoli joined the line-up for day 3 with a vibrant fashion show imbued with a strong and unbridled visual language. The MenekiNeko collection by Armando Costa & 8IGB was presented at Garage 48 in Paris on 17 January. A project that represents a collection-collaboration between the two Paris-based Italian designers and Istituto Marangoni alumni, in keeping with the School’s ardent commitment to promoting young talents while at the same time fostering the development of positive dynamics between training and professional practices. As part of a more global educational project aimed at encouraging exchange and collaboration between Istituto Marangoni alumni and new students, the MenekiNeko show blends Costa's couture DNA with Bissoli’s streetstyle in a unique dialogue that results in an explosive mix which literally distracts from the symbolism by using very urban and contemporary silhouettes. Bissoli and Costa in part share similar training and career paths, as they both attended Istituto Marangoni Milano before moving to Paris to make their way in the fashion system, and they are both currently working as tutors within the Paris School of Fashion. Yet, the differences between the two designers emerge as soon as you look at their style and orientation. In fact, while Bissoli’s bold “multi-tasking” spirit led him to work with names like Balenciaga and Elevenparis before consecrating his love for streetwear and ultimately founding his own label – 8IGB Community Clothing; Costa, whose style is more classic and calibrated, was selected for I'M Alumni Collections Revolution, Istituto Marangoni’s mentoring project that supports worthy alumni in the launch of their brand. He presented his first collection, Horror Vacui, at an exclusive show organised as part of Milano Fashion Week in September 2017 and soon moved on to showcase the same pieces at Dominicana Moda in Santo Domingo. Once again, the show amazed guests and the press with a refreshing and uninhibited take on the male wardrobe, with references to the sacred and Eastern spirituality that blur the lines between religion and advertising, global phantasmagoria and local folklore, imbuing the entire collection with seductive vibrations.