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| Mar 07: Keeping track of the going-ons at Maison Martin Margiela can be a vexing pursuit. Unmarked stores materialize in obscure corners of town with nary a sign. Then there's the designer's well-documented press shyness. So it's fitting that the recently updated website of Margiela's almost twenty-year-old house (we can't believe it's been that long either) goes easily unnoticed. In fact, as if to discourage further intrusion, a warning-style dialog box on the homepage seems to suggest that the site is under construction, until closer inspection. Presented in a style that mimics simple HTML, down to the file-in-folder organization, the domain aims to make sense of the enigmatic Margiela universe. For instance, a key demystifies the meaning behind all those numbers that are the trademark of Margiela's numerous lines. Neatly indexed collections, archives and news sections bespeak the precise creative spirit of the Antwerp-trained designer and reflect his obsessions with construction, imperfection and the "remodeling" of garments. Yet, for all the clinical and systematic fetish, there are some lighter touches, such as videos and little aphorisms ("The past will be the future") that pop up in unexpected places. But ultimately, the online home of the mysterious Monsieur Margiela makes it clear why, despite its low profile and confounding ways, his influential label remains at fashion's forefront after almost two decades.
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