Waistcoat

Martin Margiela and the Parisian house he founded sought to keep attention focused on their design output—both overtly, by refusing to accommodate interviews and portraits, and subliminally, by adopting a uniform of white lab coats that underscored the idea of the work as a collective labor. The maison’s approach to haute couture has been similarly unique. From its earliest days, Margiela’s Artisanal line has exploited the inherent qualities of found materials. With exacting craftsmanship, old matter is regularly overdyed, embellished, and pieced together in new formations. These exercises extend the life-span of things that might otherwise be rendered worthless, while remaining true to the investment in technique and customization that characterizes a couture garment. An exemplar from the first Artisanal collection, this waistcoat conjures a narrative of fine porcelain tableware reduced to useless shards and then reincarnated as an object of beauty and desire through careful handwork.