Maison Martin Margiela '20' exhibition comes to London

Somerset House is to host Maison Martin Margiela '20’ The Exhibition, a major show celebrating 20 years of one of contemporary fashion’s most influential and enigmatic designers.

Martin Margiela formerly worked as design assistant to Jean Paul Gaultier before showing his first collection under his own label in 1988. Employing a ‘deconstructivist’ approach, Margiela displayed a radically new visual language that diametrically opposed the power dressing of the 1980s.

Two decades on and Margiela is widely regarded as one of the reigning luminaries of the current fashion scene, despite no longer working for his own label, he has inspired some of the world’s most important talents such as Marc Jacobs and Prada.

Conceived in close collaboration with Maison Martin Margiela and curated by the Mode Museum, Antwerp, this show makes its London debut following critical acclaim at Antwerp and Haus der Kunst, Munich last year. This ambitious, multi-layered show captures Margiela’s unique aesthetic and vision spanning the past 20 years, by incorporating installations, photography, video and film.

The exhibition runs from 3 June to 20 September.