Like most non-Millennials, John Galliano is intrigued and unsettled by the extent to which social media has upended traditional methods of communication. “All these advancements, I just wonder if we are all at the moment genetically prepared to absorb so much information,” he said, miming a person engrossed in a relationship with his phone, oblivious to the people nearby. Then, as himself: “I’m grateful to know how important it is to live in the present.”
Unlike almost everyone regardless of generation, Galliano can channel his thoughts on the subject into a work of creative brilliance. That’s what he did on Wednesday in his spring artisanal collection for Maison Margiela.
Galliano spoke before the show, his tone more conflicted than critical. He is, after all, a social media participant himself, particularly Instagram. (Surprise!) One aspect of his interest: social media’s impact on visual communication, specifically the app filters that can be layered onto photos, ultimately altering reality. As he has done so often with disparate cultural phenomena, he translated that into his own kind of applications — high-skill haute-worthy techniques. Here, he appropriated the filter concept for big, bold-faced graphics and in his use with fabrics, layering unlike pieces — wool, point d’esprit,
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