Designers

The Interview: Glenn Martens

From working with Jean Paul Gaultier to nudity in trompe l’oeil; as Y/Project’s AW22 collection lands at MATCHESFASHION, we caught up with creative director Glenn Martens.

Interview by Bryony Stone.

Belgian designer Glenn Martens is the moment. In his possession, a vision that powers experimental Parisian brand Y/Project and has revived Italian denim brand Diesel from the depths of Y2K memory to Julia Fox-approved viral status. Two creative director roles underway, earlier this year Martens took up a third post as guest designer for storied Parisian house Jean Paul Gaultier. Helming its haute couture SS22 collection – incidentally, Jean Paul Gaultier was his former boss – saw Martens’ star rise, if possible, a little higher.

Glenn Martens might just be this year’s most talked-about designer, but he’s been steadily building Y/Project for the best part of a decade. It was while studying interior design that Martens visited The Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, and ‘discovered fashion was something you could study.’ His architectural training, however, did not go to waste; his love for structure is still visible in his hotly anticipated AW22 collection, new in at MATCHESFASHION – a heady blend of jackets, blazers, trousers and tops all printed with trompe l’oeil body prints and naked torsos.

I wanted to talk a bit about your start as creative director of Y/Project in 2013, thinking specifically about the weight of inheriting the brand after [Y/Project’s founder] Yohan Serfaty sadly died.

‘The first thing to say is there really is no elegant way to take over a brand in mourning. It’s always problematic and emotional. Everything [we did] was out of respect for Yohan and the customer, and the teams, who were picked by him. We decided to continue building on his legacy. I was proud to continue Yohan’s heritage. But, at a certain point, I understood that there was no point in continuing it in that way, because I was not Yohan. It was only Yohan who could do his own collections, so we started separating from his identity.

‘It took three or four years because we had to adjust to the new customer, losing old customers to get new customers; all these things take time. It would have potentially been easier to cut clean and start from scratch, but as you know for young brands, it’s very dangerous. We don’t have investors, so we needed those old customers to keep on surviving.’

Y/Project AW22.

Y/Project AW22 collection.

‘We decided to continue building on [Yohan’s] legacy. I was proud to continue [his] heritage.’

Yohan was designing for himself, almost creating his own wardrobe. Who do you think you design for at Y/Project?

‘I don’t really design for one type of person; it’s really about construction and garments, but we try to reflect an eclecticism. Sometimes garments are quite sexy, other times quite strict and severe. They can be quite preppy, they can be quite flamboyant. There are many men and women in every collection.’

Y/Project has really blown up over the last few collections. Was there a specific moment in time where you felt people responding differently to your work?

‘Y/Project has a very complex, explosive identity on the catwalk. The silhouettes are not there to be beautiful, they’re there for the concepts, for the experimentation, and to try to challenge things.

‘Rihanna was the biggest fan; she buys the collection every season. The problem was more with the public, not the special fashion historians or the fashion niche. During Covid-19, we presented the brand in different ways through how-to-wear videos. Our videos really focused on how to construct the garments, and because of that, people started to understand [Y/Project] a bit better.

‘It hasn’t changed the way I design, which is still eclectic, experimental, explosive, and versatile. It’s not easy to understand, but it’s been digested. It’s funny; whenever we do anything that’s easily accessible, it doesn’t sell so well. I’m very happy we can do what we want to do.’

Rihanna in Y/Project, 2017.

Y/Project AW22.

Y/Project AW22.

‘Fashion can really be a bitch, so why would you do it if you can’t enjoy it?’

I want to talk to you a bit about Jean Paul Gautier. Thinking back to working at the label as a newly graduated junior designer, what do you remember from that time?

‘I mainly remember Jean Paul Gautier, because he was such a joyful person. You could really see that he enjoyed his work. It sounds like a cliché, but he was a real prototype for bon vivant: always smiling, eating well, drinking well, and laughing. Fashion can really be a bitch, so why would you do it if you can’t enjoy it?

‘So many people I knew were doing internships at big houses in Paris and they all were suffering so much, because it was so much pressure. There was none of that at the house. It was very much: “Let’s work together and have fun.” I hope I can bring a bit of that into my team now.’

What was your relationship with Jean Paul Gaultier like then?

‘You didn’t have the hierarchy, which is why it was such a joyful way of working. As a junior, I was still at the fittings, in the corner writing things down…’

What was it like to work with him this time round? Did you speak to him after the show?

‘I saw him before the show. I had dinner with him, which was lovely. But we didn’t even talk about work, we were just gossiping! Apparently, he didn’t want to see anything about the collection either because he wanted to be surprised. Then after the show he was really excited, and I got a lot of messages. For him, I think it’s really nice to see how a younger generation of designers are interpreting his work. He’s really managed to let it loose and it’s spectacular that he is able to do that.’

As a young designer, did you learn anything particular from Jean Paul Gaultier that you carry with you today?

‘I think a lot of people subconsciously learn a lot from him, because he was the inventor of a whole new era of designing; bringing street into luxury, castings, all this sort of thing was developed by him, even before [Maison] Margiela. Much of how we design now is linked to the door that he opened for so many generations.’

Do you still own any of the garments that you designed during your time there as a young designer?

‘Ah, well when you are a junior designer you aren’t really designing any sellable clothes. You are really executing what your bosses are saying.’

Do you remember the first garment that you worked on there?

‘Spring floral ties! Millions of tie prints.’

Let’s talk about the process behind the Body Morph trompe l’oeil’s… the naked prints.

‘We collaborated on the concept of body morphing but the photos are very much our models and our colours. We interpreted Jean Paul Gaultier’s concept.

‘We have a great guy who we work with here [who shot the images] – he’s a fit model too, he took a lot of internal photos and then my graphics team worked on it and made millions of developments and colour tests until we thought it was good.’

Y/Project AW22 collection.

Y/Project AW22.

‘You have to understand the ethos of the brand to be able to wear it.’

Is it important for you that people understand your collections?

‘Obviously, it is important, partly so that I can pay my employees – that always helps! What’s important is that people understand the full ethos of the brand, in that it is experimental, trying to push or question the norm. I don’t think it’s that important that people understand each garment, [the pieces are] so versatile.

‘I always try and ask the customer themselves how they want to be perceived, because often the same silhouettes can be worn in different ways, so it’s sometimes tricky to copy what we do on the runway. You have to feel it yourself. Y/Project’s customers are engaged and question themselves. How do I want to be when I wear this shirt? Do I want it completely constructed, do I want it tied up cleanly, do I want to twist things around? You have to understand the ethos of the brand to be able to wear it; it’s rarely just an easy T-shirt.’

How do you feel when you see people wearing your clothes out and about?

‘It’s a nice compliment. At the end of the day, the great thing about fashion is that it’s an industry that’s there to make people feel empowered and happy. If something goes viral, a person doesn’t need to buy it to enjoy the viral vibe; it’s more about it taking you away from everyday life.

‘When I see people wearing Y/Project, I hope they feel happy and empowered. For me, the most important thing about fashion is that it does bring that moment of joy.’

Do you wear your own collections, or do you prefer wearing your double denim uniform?

‘I am still mostly wearing my double denim; I am not the most exciting [dresser]! I have so many decisions to make every single day of my life, that I really try not to decide for myself anymore. The moment I am off work, I am wearing the same thing, eating the same thing because it’s easy. It’s like a no-brainer. On holiday, I am a follower; I’m very much a yes-person in my private life.’

How do you separate your sense of self from your output?

‘I don’t. I put a lot of myself in there, which is always the triggering part. It can be a bit emotional. But you can’t expect to find yourself in all of them in every single product. Fashion can be a moment of artistic expression, but it can also be a moment when you are a psychologist – or just a businessman.’

You’ve worked at Y/Project for nearly a decade. What continues to motivate you?

‘We rented a second studio, so we have double the space, there’s new people coming in, and there’s always a new challenge. Every year is very different, so I don’t feel stuck in the same routine.’

Jean Paul Gaultier and Glenn Martens.

Jean Paul Gaultier photographed for Paris Match, 2021, Paris.

‘For me the most important thing about fashion is that it does bring that moment of joy.’

Jean Paul Gaultier SS96.

Jean Paul Gaultier SS97.

‘It’s sort of a game of, “Are you naked or are you not naked?”’

You’ve said in the past that you hope to ask questions and illicit emotions with a collection. How do you want people to feel when they wear Y/Project AW22?

‘It’s the very first time we’ve implemented a capsule about graphics, so it was a bit out of our comfort zone. We worked a lot with the multilayering of man and woman. It’s sort of a game of, “Are you naked or are you not naked?” I think it’s more about triggering people, challenging the norm.’

Where would you like the collection to be worn?

‘It’s quite an easy collection. I think you could wear them every day with a sneaker or a heel and be ready for cocktails. The print is quite conceptual, but the shape is easy to wear in everyday life. It can really follow your day. But I’m not sure if you’d like to look naked if you work in a bank, then again, it’s not a fully naked [image], it’s a graphic!’

Y/Project AW22.

PHOTOGRAPHS VICTOR VIRGILE/GAMMA-RAPHO/ GETTY IMAGES. PIERRE SUU/GC IMAGES. CLAIRE DELFINO/PARIS MATCH/CONTOUR. PAT/ARNAL.