GFW26 International Designer - Ruei-Jei Chong
The designers who will shape the next decade of fashion are graduating right now. At the International Collective Catwalk at Graduate Fashion Week 2026, I had a runway full of them in front of my lens.
Last week I was invited to photograph the International Collective Catwalk at Graduate Fashion Week 2026, the 35th edition of the event, held at The Truman Brewery on Brick Lane in London from 15 to 18 June and presented by F&F. As a fashion and editorial photographer working Internationally, this was one of the shows I most wanted in front of my lens.
The International Collective Catwalk is Graduate Fashion Week's curated showcase of graduate talent drawn from its international member universities, and it lived up to its billing. In a single run of looks the runway travelled from China and Japan to Uruguay, Malaysia and Sri Lanka, each designer arriving with a distinct visual language. Press coverage of the week captured the range well, noting pearl-detailed gas masks, finely knitted pink cloaks, fur-trimmed heels and heavily beaded warrior dresses on the runway (10 Magazine). For a photographer, that variety is a gift. Every look asks for a different eye.
Images (Left to Right) of Designers: Wang Yihan & Cai Zhen, Seona Choi, Nina Wang, Nawaaal Joosub.
The designers
There was real depth across the line-up. Uruguayan designer Alfonsina González of Integra Escuela Pablo Giménez drew on Uruguayan literature, setting rigid structures against light, airy fabrics to explore containment and release (10 Magazine). China was strongly represented, with work from the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology (Ziyu Zhu), Donghua University (Fu Sihan and Xuanting Jiang), the Sichuan Fine Arts Institute (Wang Yihan, Cai Zhen and Manrui Li) and the Wuhan Institute of Design (Xu Ziyan, Fei Jiahao and Nina Wang). Japan came through the Osaka Institute of Fashion (Keishin Fukunaga and Itsuki Seko), Malaysia through Taylor's University (Seona Choi and Arman Faiezal) and City University Malaysia (Kavin Chong), and Sri Lanka through the Academy of Design (Charuka Dilshan Gunasekara). The full line-up is credited at the foot of this post.
The team behind the show
A catwalk like this is the work of a large and skilled team, and that craft was visible in every frame. The show was produced for the Graduate Fashion Foundation by show producer Beth Cannon, with casting by Jonathan Lyons. Hair was led by L'Oréal Professionnel, and make-up by GUNKPro under team lead Charlotte Logue, with Rimmel London among the beauty partners. My thanks to the GFF team, led by managing director Nicola Hitchens, for the access and the welcome.
Why I love shooting graduate shows
Platforms like the International Collective are where the next generation of designers reach an international audience for the first time, often after years of work. Photographing them properly matters, both for the designers and for the record of the night. With around thirty years behind the camera, and as a member of the WPJA and SWPP, my aim is always to hand designers, organisers and models images they are proud to share.
See the full gallery and get in touch
If you are a designer, agency or organiser and would like your high-resolution images, or if you are planning an editorial, lookbook or fashion shoot, I would love to hear from you:
Follow more of my fashion and editorial work on Instagram: @martin.japheth
Full designer credits, International Collective Catwalk, GFW 2026
(Source: official GFW International Collective Catwalk programme, presented by F&F)
Ruei-Jei Chong, Shih Chien University
Keishin Fukunaga, Voutrail The Fashion Academy, Osaka Institute of Fashion
Fu Sihan, College of Fashion and Design, Donghua University
Pengyuan Fang, Shanghai Institute of Visual Arts
Wang Yihan and Cai Zhen, Sichuan Fine Arts Institute
Ziyu Zhu, Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology
Manrui Li, Sichuan Fine Arts Institute
Xuanting Jiang, Sino-Japanese Programme, Donghua University
Ke Zhang, Chongqing Education University
Xu Ziyan, Wuhan Institute of Design
Fei Jiahao, Wuhan Institute of Design
Nina Wang, Wuhan Institute of Design
Alfonsina González, Integra Escuela Pablo Giménez
Jose Luis Santa, Colegiatura
Matina Báez and Juliana González, Integra Escuela Pablo Giménez
Kavin Chong, City University Malaysia
Seona Choi, Taylor's University
Itsuki Seko, Voutrail The Fashion Academy, Osaka Institute of Fashion
Nawaal Joosub, Stadio School of Fashion, Art and Design (Sofad)
Arman Faiezal, Taylor's University
Charuka Dilshan Gunasekara, Academy of Design, Sri Lanka
With thanks to: Graduate Fashion Foundation, F&F, L'Oréal Professionnel Paris, Rimmel London and GUNKPro. Show producer Beth Cannon. Casting Jonathan Lyons. Make-up: GUNKPro team lead Charlotte Logue, lead artists Lucy Parkes and Emily Williams, backstage leads Manvi Kashyap, Libby Alexander and Izzy Swift. Hair for L'Oréal Professionnel Paris: Clare Hansford (Headmasters), Donna Hunt (Neville Hair and Beauty) and Frazer Wallace (The Haus Studio).
