Maison Margiela A/W 2019 Paris Fashion Week Women's

Mood board: Instagram feeds, live runway streams, show reports filmed by reviewers on phones... fashion weeks’ digital coverage can be dizzying. When John Galliano presented his prismatic S/S 2019 Artisanal collection in January, the designer was preoccupied by the barrage of information that bombards Gen Z, and their difficultly to decipher what’s true in today's virtual vortex. His A/W 2019 was an antidote to this ‘digital decadence’. A reduced and restrained presentation of garments that drew on the brand’s typically deconstructed aesthetic and the spliced and reassembled ‘Decortique’ approach which Galliano introduced when he joined the house.
The collection featured pieces reduced to their truest form using humble menswear fabrics like herringbone, flannel and cavalry twills – like men’s trousers twisted into a bustier dress, a faux leather trench sported as long shorts, tailored trousers flattened into bulbous skirts. There were still elements of excess here – after all we’ll never truly dial down all that digital colour. The men’s looks were the most notably flamboyant (genderless design was a preoccupation of Galliano’s S/S 2019 ready-to-wear offering). Skinny jacquard trousers had colourful flamingo patterns, and wadded coats nodded to the brand’s squidgy Glam Slam bag.
Best in show: Paris has a penchant for the power shoulder, see Saint Laurent and Lemaire for more maxi shapes. At Maison Margiela, boxy jackets and double-breasted coats had oversized curving shoulders and sleeves that resembled thick tubes.
Sound bite: For the show, Galliano released the sixth iteration of his ‘The Memory of…’ podcast which allows the Gen Z audience he considers each season to hear more about the inspiration behind his collections. ‘I wanted to produce that feeling of being unsatiated, if only to inspire myself and the team to a new direction,’ he explains. ‘The artifice, the excess, the toning down, degenerated to what I’m feeling today… taking things right down to the purest, to the necessary.
Maison Margiela A/W 2019.
Maison Margiela A/W 2019.
Maison Margiela A/W 2019.
Maison Margiela A/W 2019.
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
-
Japanese designer Shinichiro Ogata's latest venture is a modern riff on the traditions of his home country
As he launches Saboe, a series of new tearooms and shops across Japan, we delve into Shinichiro Ogata's creative vision, mirrored throughout the spaces and objects, rituals and moments of his projects
-
These are Dover Street Market’s jewellery designers to watch, exhibiting at the London store all summer
In a special exhibition, Dover Street Market London is highlighting 36 emerging jewellery designers to know – shop our pick of their pieces
-
A street-like Pune clubhouse celebrates the ‘joy of shared, unhurried experiences’
A brick clubhouse in Pune by Studio VDGA reflects the fluidity and openness of the Indian way of life with a series of welcoming plazas, courtyards and lanes
-
Glenn Martens’ thrilling Maison Margiela debut was a balancing act between past, present and future
The Belgian designer made his debut for the house last night with a collection that looked towards medieval decoration for a new expression of opulence
-
Art meets perfume in cross-disciplinary fragrance series Nez 1+1
Talents from film and fragrance come together to create Ansongo, the latest scent resulting from a creative matchmaking project by perfume revue Nez
-
Haute Couture Week A/W 2025: what to expect
Five moments to look out for at Haute Couture Week A/W 2025 in Paris (starting Monday 7 July), from Glenn Martens’ debut for Maison Margiela to Demna’s Balenciaga swansong. Plus, ‘new beginnings’ from JW Anderson
-
The collections you might have missed this S/S 2026 menswear season
Between the headliners in Paris, Milan and Florence, a few off-schedule displays are deserving of honourable mention – from Martine Rose’s sexually-charged portrait of Kensington Market to Sander Lak’s appointment-only namesake debut
-
‘They gave me carte blanche to do what I want’: Paul Kooiker photographs the students of Gerrit Rietveld Academie for Acne Studios
Heralding the launch of a new permanent gallery from fashion label Acne Studios, the celebrated Dutch photographer’s new body of work praises the bravery of ‘people who choose to go to an art school at a time like this’
-
‘I’m surprised that I got this far’: Rick Owens on his bombastic Paris retrospective, ‘Temple of Love’
The Dark Prince of Fashion sits down with Wallpaper* to discuss legacy, love, and growing old in Paris as a display at the Palais Galliera tells the story of his subversive career
-
The standout shows of Paris Fashion Week Men’s S/S 2026: Hermès to Craig Green
Wallpaper* picks the very best of Paris Fashion Week Men’s S/S 2026, from Véronique Nichanian’s portrait of summer in the city for Hermès to Craig Green’s return to the Paris runway
-
Paris Fashion Week Men’s S/S 2026: live updates from the Wallpaper* team
From 24-29 June, Paris Fashion Week Men’s arrives in the French capital. Follow along for a first look at the shows, presentations and other fashion happenings, as seen by the Wallpaper* editors