"The Hermès Years" is the new retrospective that explores the partnership between Hermès and Martin Margiela

The genius of Martin Margiela has so deeply influenced contemporary fashion that we continue to celebrate his creativity. This time is the MoMu Museum in Antwerp, the birthplace of the designer, to dedicate a retrospective focused on those years when Martin Margiela has driven the creative direction of Hermès.

The exhibition, entitled The Hermès Years, wants to celebrate the partnership lasted from 1997 to 2003 with twelve collections between the Belgian designer and the French fashion house, focusing on the visionary impact Margiela has given to the Maison. We often forget the creative direction that Martin Margiela cared for Hermès underestimating also the importance for that period.

In those years, between the end of the nineties and the beginning of the new Millennium, the fashion was focused on Tom Ford's porno-chic for Gucci and the Miuccia Prada's intellectual attitude, but Hermès was surprising to all by entrusting its fate to the visionary, revolutionary and groundbreaking designer par excellence, Martin Margiela.  At a time of loss - also considering the imminent end of a century - the twelve Margiela collections for Hermès seemed an antidote to the excesses of fashion, a return to the essence of the woman with an eye for quality tailoring. Basic silhouettes, clean lines and a palette of neutral colors enriched by dark and warm tones and all shades of brown, iconic color of Hermès, characterized also by a reminder of the "primitive" side of the woman, reinterpreting the feminine with a revolutionary new garment, sensitive to the dignity and women's bodies. The debut of Martin Margiela Hermès for the FW98 season it is a clear proof. Inspired to sportswear and leisure twenties' garments, the FW98 Hermès remains a timeless collection, and very actual.

 The twelve Margiela collections for Hermès seemed an antidote to the excesses of fashion, a return to the essence of the woman with an eye for quality tailoring.

If after about twenty years we are still talking about the partnership between Hermès e Martin Margiela, and about the Belgian designer in general, is not a coincidence. The designer has reinvented the fashion standards and today his creative impact, his woman vision is influencing the young designers – Vetements is just one of these. This fact is testified also by Kaat Debo, MoMu Museum's Director, during an interview with Dazed & Confused:

"Martin’s name and heritage were very much alive in the press and in the collections of different designers. I wondered, ‘Why now?’ I feel that in a time where a lot is changing within the fashion industry when the fashion system is very much under pressure and designers and brands are looking for a new business model, Martin’s work becomes very relevant again. It’s so rich in ideas and concepts that if you are looking for an alternative, you somehow always end up with Martin Margiela".

The Hermès Years will be open to the public from 31 March to 27 August 2017 at the MoMu Museum in Antwerp.