“Coco Chanel goes to Balmoral and gets trashed on sherry with the Queen.” Those were the words Glenn Martens used to describe Diesel’s Fall/Winter 2025 collection. To say the description is wild is true, but to say it isn’t accurate is to have not seen the collection. The show began before the first look even walked down the runway—the set was as much a spectacle as the looks themselves. Six miles’ worth of fabric bolts, hand-painted, sprayed, and written on by street art groups, made up the backdrop. Beyond being logistically impressive, the concept was undeniably effective: it set the mood—artistic chaos.

The first looks started out peaceful enough. Structured tweed tops, paired with either denim booty shorts or baggy jeans, delivered the Coco Chanel fantasy Martens had promised. But things quickly took a sharp turn before diving headfirst into pure, wild experimentation. Before we even get to the rubber tops designed to mimic knitted human skin, let’s start with houndstooth distortion. Frayed denim was manipulated to create the pattern on cropped jackets with matching panties. Then, just as a few nylon navy puffer jackets and zip-ups lulled us into a false sense of familiarity, Martens threw a curveball. The aforementioned rubber tops appeared alongside distorted, melting leather jackets. Dévoré maxi skirts were paired with tops that crumpled shirts into two-dimensional forms on the models’ bodies.

The collection felt almost reassuring for an audience of people watching close by as Martens is set to make his Maison Margiela debut—he’s a force to be reckoned with, it felt good to be reminded.

Words by Pedro Vasconcelos

DIESEL FW25

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