Glenn Martens's first couture collection for Maison Margiela was insane

Yesterday Glenn Martens unveiled his first couture collection for Maison Margiela, and we can’t stop thinking about it. The show took place at Le Centquatre in the 19th arrondissement of Paris, the same venue that hosted Martin Margiela’s final show in 2009.

The space felt like a ghostly atelier lost in time, its walls covered in photocopied fragments of medieval interiors and a checkerboard floor sculpted from papier-mâché. This crumbling, theatrical set echoed Margiela’s roots in deconstruction and underscored Martens’ fascination with history, illusion, and the poetry of decay.

Martens delivered a vision that was haunting, frightening, and yet breathtakingly beautiful—a paradox perfectly aligned with the house’s DNA and a love letter to Margiela’s origins.

It’s been a year and a half since John Galliano last presented an Artisanal collection for the house, leaving a palpable vacuum and a trail of anticipation. Martens show out, embodying Margiela’s signature tension between excess and minimalism.

As the models appeared, the music slowly rose until “Disarm” by The Smashing Pumpkins filled the room, an electrifying choice made even more surreal with Billy Corgan himself seated in the front row.

The garments were exercises in contradiction: crafted from humble materials like paper, plastic, and layers of paint, transforming the ordinary into something extraordinary. It was a testament to Martens’ talent for elevating unconventional materials into objects of couture-level craftsmanship, turning couture into a walking paradox that challenges fashion’s traditional codes.

In homage to the brand’s legacy, Martens reached back to the house’s first show in SS89, when models famously appeared with their faces obscured, ensuring the clothes were the true stars. Masks, a recurring motif in Margiela’s history, made a powerful return.

Martens didn’t take a bow, keeping in tradition with Margiela.

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