A documentary on the life of Martin Margiela titled “The Artist Is Absent,” was screened at the TriBeCa Film Festival 2015 which answered some lingering questions about the enigmatic Belgian designer.
Directed by Alison Chernick and produced by Yoox Group, the short film focused on the Belgian designer’s creative path through interviews with Raf Simons, Olivier Saillard, Jean-Paul Gaultier, Suzy Menkes and other fashion industry figures.
The short film covered how the designer got included as the “seventh member” of the Antwerp Six and his significant role in placing Belgium on the fashion map in the ’80s and ’90s. The short movie revealed how Margiela picked his sense of deconstruction from his mother who had a habit of buying vintage furniture and taking it apart.
The film also served as a sort of swan song for the designer, who left his namesake house sometime around 2008.
