Glenn Martens is busy.
BetweenY/ProjectandDiesel, and between Paris and Milan, the designer has little time for anything other than work.
MartensisY/Project, and has made Diesel very much his own.
Ten years of Y/Project shot in Martens’s hometown of Bruges, Belgium.
Read through as Martens talks muses, history, and what he wants to do next.
The cover ofA Magazine Curated by Glenn Martens.
Blake was quite clear that this is not a magazine about brands, but about the designer.
The cover ofA Magazine Curated by Glenn Martens.
When I started my Glenn Martens brand, I built a massive bible of visuals.
Theres going to be so many moments in life where things pass by.
You have no idea of whats happening between Diesel and Y/Project and millions of collections and millions of things.
Photo: Zhong Lin / Courtesy ofA Magazine Curated by Glenn Martens
Sometimes you might forget your North Star a bit, so this bible is good to have.
I went back to that.
What are those pillars for you?
Ten years of Y/Project shot in Martens’s hometown of Bruges, Belgium.
I think the starting point is always the same thing for most creative people.
Mine was very much linked to Bruges, my hometown.
Its a medieval pearl called the Venice of the North.
Conservationist Kristien Hanselaer in conversation with Blake Abbie about art restoration.
It was one of the richest cities in the western world in the 14th century.
A lot of exquisite, austere early gothic architecture, that is a little sad.
Then it became a hotspot for mass tourism in the 1870s.
“Cathedral Woman.”
That contrast has colored everything I do.
Back then you had the Belgians and the Brazilians, which was also an interesting contrast.
Ten years of Y/Project shot in Martenss hometown of Bruges, Belgium.
Gay porn star The Sharok sat in conversation with Lars Byrrensen Petersen.
Youve become known, particularly with Diesel, for your sense of humor.
It goes back to Bruges.
You find fun ways to live, and Diesel is inside of that.
Artwork: Josh Kline / Courtesy ofA Magazine Curated by Glenn Martens.
The whole Belgian way of thinking is like this, too.
Belgians are known for having a sarcastic sense of humor.
There is also this whole surrealistic vibe to Belgium, which also reflects on my work.
Photo: Paul Kooiker / Courtesy ofA Magazine Curated by Glenn Martens.
On the topic of churches, I enjoyed the story in the magazine about religious architecture.
I grew up surrounded by churches and cathedrals.
Are you religious or faithful at all, or what about it do you find interesting?
Photo: Bob & Julie Bagnall / Courtesy ofA Magazine Curated by Glenn Martens.
Nothing [laughs].
Im not religious at all.
I have zero religion [in me], but I do respect the symbolism of it a lot.
I respect the idea of gathering, and Im trying to focus only on the good of religion.
When you think about whats positive about religion, its helped generations of people go through difficult times.
The buildings more than the books I like, and this whole Disneyland factor.
Its like a fairytale, and I love fairytales.
Maybe on doomsday I will have another opinion, but in my world today Im very agnostic.
Fashion is there to make people dream.
Churches and mosques do the same thing.
Its quite good to celebrate absurdity sometimes.
Its fascinating, and of course, the art history and the art.
Conservationist Kristien Hanselaer in conversation with Blake Abbie about art restoration.
I was raised Catholic, so I was always fascinated by iconography.
There is some of that too in the magazine, which I found really interesting.
This idea of the icon and the muse with Elizabeth Siddal, The Sharok, and the Diesel shoot.
Why did you choose to explore this?
Blake kept asking me who my muses are.
I was obsessed with Elizabeth Siddal growing up, back to the beginning again.
One of the first top models in the history of mankind.
She is known to be one of the first independent women who did not come from aristocracy.
We are also talking about empowering yourself.
And that Diesel shoot.
Well they both do the same thing, I thought.
I think people became obsessed with Elizabeth Siddal.
The whole school [the PreRaphaelites] was obsessed and they were all fighting to get her to model.
And theres so many people obsessed with Sharok.
I find it to be quite a straight link.
They just have different mediums.
Gay porn star The Sharok sat in conversation with Lars Byrrensen Petersen.
Im also curious about your own relationship as both artist and idol, or artist and muse.
Your work has become very influential and is highly referenced.
I see it on other runways and in student collections.
Is this something you think about?
I dont think about it at all, to be honest.
I personally have no idols myself.
I really try not to think about it.
That is the problem.
We have to always take a stab at give it a little bit of real life.
Diesel is the same thing.
We are there to work.
But not in Brooklyn, just downtown.
I think its part of the deal.
Its kind of fun.
Whats the tension you explore between the past and the present?
How important is that to you?
What can I say about this whole historic thing?
Even Diesel, and most people dont see it, has quite referential historic elements.
Some looks are queens or whatever from 16th or 17th century portraits.
For me the most important thing is to never do a classic one-to-one reference.
My first connection to fashion was me at six or seven years old drawing historic figures.
Its not interesting to give direct references.
That element of realness has always attracted me to your work.
Its interesting what you say about not doing it for the hype.
Thats evident, but your work is still very muchhyped.
Its not necessarily trend oriented, but it still sets trends.
Do you ever consider that impact when creating?
First of all, Diesel is a different baby.
Its a lifestyle brand.
Theres the runway where we are working on that dream.
But I think that the hype, the success of Diesel is that its not snobby.
The democratic price point of some garments, because some can be quite expensive, is important.
That theyre still fashion items.
Its also a brand about having fun.
Dont give a shit, respect each other, enjoy life.
Yet we still take the customer quite seriously.
If its expensive its because theres a big development and a lot of craftsmanship.
Diesel grew 13% last year while its a time where everything is collapsing and falling into pieces.
There is a global mindset that is changing quite a bit.
People want integrity, they want to be taken seriously.
This is a good segue into advertising.
I liked Silvia Pradas essay about the legacy of Diesel campaigns.
I remember those ads and the United Color of Benetton ones from when I was growing up.
They were fearless and transgressive and important.
Can you tell me about expanding this tradition?
One of the reasons why I fell in love with Diesel in the beginning was for the campaigns.
We are a bit from the same generation, but we lived somewhere different.
Thats what Silvia was writing about.
You had a gay couple kissing in the middle of a campaign.
I was gay-bashed my whole teenage years, even when I wasnt officially gay.
That is definitely what Im trying to do all the time now.
You see gay people kissing, people vomiting.
With Diesel, you talk to everybody.
The fashion people and everyone else.
My brother is a straight fireman.
He doesnt give a shit about fashion, but he likes Diesel.
Do you ever think about what you want to do next?
Again, Im extremely blessed.
Go to a concert, live a really lovely private life.
I think I am lucky to have these two amazing platforms that speak very different languages.
All of these fun moments.
