The Comeback

John Galliano Takes the Helm of Maison Martin Margiela

On October 6, 2014, John Galliano, the disgraced former designer of the houses of Dior and John Galliano, was named Creative Director of the nuanced, secretive Maison Martin Margiela. The return to the stage of one of the most notorious yet most admired fashion designers of our time is marked by curiosity mixed with caution.

After his stunningly vile breakdown in a Paris cafe, a racist and anti-Semitic outburst purportedly fueled by alcohol and drugs, John Galliano has spent the past three and a half years attempting to atone for his actions and plead for forgiveness. In a 2013 interview with Charlie Rose, he referenced childhood bullying as a gay immigrant in South London that caused deep-seated rage and resentment, in turn contributing to a downward spiral as an adult. Careful to note that prior trauma is no excuse for his behavior, Galliano’s recollections struck a tone of profound regret and humiliation. By the time the video of the event surfaced, a humbled Galliano told Charlie Rose, “I was emotionally, spiritually, physically, mentally bankrupt.” A rising addiction to alcohol, Valium, and sleeping pills had driven him to a desperate place he identifies as “hell.” Designing thirty two collections a year, a dizzying pace for a creative mind, saddled him with mounting pressures and high expectations, and an addicted Galliano saw no way out. Grateful to be alive today, the designer’s proclamations appeared sincere and heartfelt.

Aside from the alleged disconnect between Galliano’s extravagant fairytale creations and the architectural, understated brilliance of Margiela, the question remains whether Galliano, in accepting a post at the elusive Belgian designer’s namesake house, is walking himself into the same trap that suffocated him in the past. In charge of women’s and men’s wear, haute couture, diffusion line MM6, jewelry and fragrance, not to mention sales and marketing concepts, his role as Creative Director encompasses multiple functions and may pull him in varied directions that could affect his sobriety if left uncontrolled.

Renzo Rosso, the Italian fashion mogul whose group OTB owns the Margiela brand, displayed faith in Galliano when choosing him for the position. Declaring him “a talent beyond definition and time,” Rosso expressed his excitement for both Galliano and the Margiela label. In appointing such a controversial figure, who has since invested the time, dedication, and commitment to rehabilitation and repentance, Rosso must also accept the responsibility required when employing a sober addict. What may happen if the current speed of the fashion cycle stresses Galliano to the point of another nervous breakdown? Is OTB in some measure accountable for regulating the schedule of an employee known to struggle with addiction and madness?

On January 12th at 4:30 PM in London, Galliano debuted his first Artisanal haute couture collection under the Margiela label. Important voices such as Vanessa Friedman, fashion director of The New York Times, posited that it’s time for Galliano to evolve as a designer, molding himself to the established identity of the Maison. While creative transformation is the lifeblood of an industry increasingly driven by a frantic obsession for new product, Galliano’s point of view as a designer-theatrical, ornate, and lavishly decadent-may be just what Margiela needs, and Rosso desires.

In this spirit, John Galliano’s first collection embodied the purest blend of two visionary creators, a hybrid of the fallen genius and his new house’s reclusive master. Margiela’s tradition of reappropriating discarded materials to create fantastical pieces defined by their surprising compatibility with fashion silhouettes, while dimmed in this show, nonetheless remained alive in Galliano’s imaginings through shells used to create a surrealistic mask pinned to the core of a coat in blood red. Allusions like these ghostly embellishments to monstrosity and terror come forth from the shadows of Galliano’s past, a further admission of guilt in his own eyes.

Amidst the careful artistry of these multi-dimensional garments, including a sheer shredded red dress with long, swishing sleeves adorned with safety pins worn over a leopard print bodysuit, came tailored pantsuits, an expression of modernity and the square shapes that harken back to Margiela’s Fall 2007 Ready-to-Wear presentation. Romantic in their simplicity and seamlessly constructed, no additional accent nor found recycled object could have enhanced the intricacy of these separates.

Galliano once said, “I dare women to dream.” Yesterday’s show demonstrated that the man who captivated the fashion world from his time as a graduate student at Central Saint Martins to his reinvention of the house of Dior can still bring dreams to life and prove that even nightmares dissolve in the misty morning hours before the dawn.