The Maison Margiela Fall 2026 collection featured living dolls of porcelain; destroyed tapestries and distressed dresses too fragile to repair; Edwardian silhouettes, and a wardrobe interrogating thrift essentials that is the essence of Maison Margiela.

Throughout, Maison Margiela foundational codes are celebrated and evolved, such as second skin garments, bianchetto white painted pieces, resourcefulness of unconventional materials, fusions of fabrics bonded together, assemblages of disparate materials, and the anonymity of masks.

The collection unveiled porcelain, a Chinese invention, expressed in different ways, layered and printed organza, sometimes in dresses with eight layers. Archetypes of tailoring were treated in a Maison Margiela way: tailcoats have their tails cut off, or are painted white bianchetto; double-breasted jackets and trenches are fused with jersey second skin. Frayed and unwearable vintage dresses were glued to a fabric base then ripped off, leaving the memory of the garment on a new dress. Edwardian touches occur across the collection, such as high necklines, emphasized sleeves, lace finishes and long lengths. Each look is worn with an Artisanal mask, creating a uniformity of anonymity through the show.

 

Debuting this season were Level Cut-Out boots, which revealed a layer of leather lining. Ankle boots have the front entirely cut away, leaving a cuff over the ankle and the foot exposed to the toe. Knee-high boots had two cutaway windows across the bridge of the foot. Heel-less pumps were bianchetto, painted white, while cowboy boots are also heel-less. Perspex heel sandals had transparent straps, Tabi ballerinas were introduced in second skin, and Tabi-claw boots come with a stiletto heel. The new Link bag was soft structure, with a frame closure moved to the front. The metal link chain was covered, as if shrink-wrapped, in the same material as the bag, such as velvet, leather and broken mirror.

 

This show in Shanghai brought together both the ready-to-wear and the Artisanal collections. Presented “couture” pieces, of which only a few will ever be produced, alongside those which will be available in stores around the world. This was how the collections of the Maison were shown: Artisanal and ready-to-wear together.