Fashion Week August Couture 2024, Maison Margiela brand

On Thursday night, the unique show of the Maison Margiela brand was held at the last show of Paris Couture Fashion Week 2024, and this week ended with great grandeur under the heavy rain. John Galliano, the brand's creative director, presented a theatrical masterpiece that combined fashion, art and drama. Everything about this show was unique and scary at the same time: from the venue, which was a creepy underground bar under the Pont Alexandre III bridge, to the clothes, hairstyles, thick and oily makeup, and even the way the models walked, reminiscent of dolls. Cookie was possessed. The venue was littered with broken plates, dirty glasses and spent drinks, symbolically depicting 3am. The invitation to this show was a subway ticket, and famous guests such as Kim Kardashian and Kylie Jenner also sat in the first row of this show.

source of inspiration

Theater, romantic relationships and historical legends have always been Galliano's source of inspiration; This time, he also went to the Hungarian artist and photographer, Brassaï, and was inspired by his portraits in the 1920s and 1930s, which showed the underground night clubs and the underground streets of Paris. Brasai was a prominent artist who worked for Harper's Bazaar magazine from 1936 to 1963. His interest in nightlife in the streets of Paris drew him to the world of street photography, and the night life of Paris (including prostitutes, rapists, and criminals) attracted his attention the most. Henry Miller, an American writer, somewhere called Brassai the eye of Paris. This artist's photos of Paris in the 30s looked illegal and dirty, and this fascinated John Galliano.

What was the focus of this series?

The Maison Margiela show was a journey into the heart of Paris nightlife. In this black and cinematic fictional world, Galliano's clothes were a testament to his unique skill and vision; Each piece spoke of “seduction” and emphasized the anatomy of the human body with a focus on the narrow waist and prominent lower body. The hair and make-up of the models were in some cases clearly inspired by Brasai's nocturnal images. Galliano started working on this collection from July 2022. Inventive use of sloppy hairstyles, dirty bandages around the knees of the models, bruises on the body, underwear with symbolic extra hair, shiny and doll makeup, worried faces, walking with fear and playing with lighting in a designed and scary place; All were narratives of a combination of fashion and drama, offering unpredictable silhouettes. Galliano's underground scenes were even a reminder of the extent to which the fashion industry is trapped in prisons and fences.

Unique details

The collection, while dark and seductive, was also a celebration of artistry and creativity: special cuts, unique fabric techniques, very tight Victorian corsets, plunging hips, shoes like animal hooves, and sheer fabrics, figure-hugging and gorgeous watercolors. had given to this collection. The collection depicts forbidden lovers, dancers, prostitutes, workers, deserters and gangsters wandering the banks of the Seine and anxiously heading towards an underground nightclub. Some models used oversized coats as a protective shield and were not sure whether to trust others; They walked with anxious eyes and scanned the surroundings as if danger was near them. While the other models walked confidently, reminiscent of night criminals in Paris.

The secret of shiny makeup

The “glass skin” makeup of the Maison Margiela Artisanal 2024 collection became one of the hottest topics at Paris Haute Couture Fashion Week. The creator and make-up artist of this make-up was Pat McGrath, a 53-year-old Englishman who, together with his team, made the faces of the models so beautiful and amazing. A lot of blush, very thin eyebrows and the most noticeable thing: a shiny skin base! All these things made the models look like princess dolls. In addition to the make-up itself, the videos in which the models tear off their face make-up and remove it from their faces were also very popular in cyberspace. Cosmetics brand Pat McGrath Labs stated in a press release that the products used to achieve glassy skin are Divine Skin: Rose 001-The Essence Biphasic Hydrating Solution and Pat McGrath Labs Sublime Perfection Foundation. Along with the aforementioned products, the makeup team airbrushed a layer of “High Gloss Glaze” onto the models' skin to achieve a wax-like sheen. Many believe that this is Liquid Glass (liquid paraffin) from the Kyrolan brand, so the models could easily peel it off their skin.

Galliano's diverse and innovative techniques

The series introduced several new techniques developed by John Galliano. From fabric to cut, Galliano's techniques are constantly evolving and improving, and he is admired for his innovative approaches to his haute couture collections. In the following, we mention some of the new fabric making techniques of the Margiela spring 2024 collection:

Seamlace technique

A new technique means garments made entirely from pieces of lace or other fabric, so that the result is a completely seamless form. The seamless technique is a process that uses heat or ultrasound to bond fabrics together to create a strong and flexible bond. This technique eliminates the need for traditional sewing methods and results in garments that are more comfortable, beautiful and durable.

Milletrage technique

It's a new technique that creates optical illusions and makes lightweight clothes look like they're heavy. These dresses are made of several layers of light fabric such as organza or crepe, which have eerie prints of the texture of heavy and old fabrics, as if they are of the same material.

Retrograding technique

This technique represents all kinds of decorations, appliques and embroidery that start from the bottom of the dress and become less and less as they go up. The name Retrogard is derived from a celestial phenomenon: the apparent movement of the moon means the return of our energy to our inner self and brings deep self-awareness.

Emotional cutting technique

It is a new form of cut that adapts clothes to our body movements and attitudes: a coat pulled over the head to avoid getting wet from the rain, a raised collar to cover the face, and trousers as if to escape from a puddle. The water was raised.

Aquarelling technique

This is a new term and the same way a painter works with watercolors, tulle or muslin is painted and feels like a cloth soaked in water and clinging to the skin.

Rétrécirage technique

It is a new and advanced technique in cutting, in which the volume of heavy clothes is reduced and it takes on an anatomical and flirtatious silhouette. The word Rétrécirage is derived from the French term used to shrink tweed jackets or trousers and skirts.

Caisetting technique

It is a technique in which delicate fabrics such as organza, silk and net are raised and grooved to resemble corrugated cardboard.

Bias cutting technique

This fabric cutting technique causes the natural flexibility of the fabric in “diagonal” cuts and creates harmony and dynamism between the fabric and the body.

A memorable collection

According to critics, this series became one of Galliano's best series and they believe that this show will remain in the minds for several reasons; First, because Galliano used unique courage and creativity in creating this collection, because he is a master of discovering beauty from defects and anomalies, and this has always been the distinguishing feature of Galliano's fashion. Secondly, he had presented this collection with his own voice and with his own power and skill, so that this collection represented the vision of John Galliano more than Margiela. Finally, we can say that Maison Margiela's Artisanal Collection left behind all the Spring 2024 couture collections because now, it's time to do something exciting and fun for people to follow and discover with interest the power behind the clothes.