Can Diesel Crack the Formula for Successful Live-ing?
Review of Diesel Fall 2024 Fashion Show
By Angela Baidoo
THE COLLECTION
THE VIBE
THE THEME
Diesel, under the creative direction of Glenn Martens, is about giving the people what they want, and this season that was to ‘See and be Seen’. In the most voyeuristic way possible (reminiscent of several episodes of Black Mirror, or for those who remember, the movie Sliver with Sharon Stone and William Baldwin) the brand brought us into the inner-workings of that most chaotic of periods – the run-up to a runway show. This was surely to the delight of the brands young fans who have been born into an era where they spend the majority of their time looking into or out of screens, longing for belonging, which today they got x1000.
This past week (from 18th -21st February) for anyone who wished to tune in, Big Brother-style cameras were installed in Diesel HQ for viewers to watch along during casting and styling sessions, with Glenn Martens and his team. Observe seamstresses making last-minute adjustments in the atelier, and for any budding set designers there was also a live-stream of the runway set-up.
Putting cynicism aside (was this simply another gimmick to engage Gen Z, by going viral?), streaming the intensive process of putting on a show – in the minutiae – may finally put to rest those who consider the business of fashion a frivolous pursuit of fantasy. It is hours and days, weeks and years for what will be 10-15 minutes on a runway. Forgotten almost as soon as the next season rolls around. The Diesel broadcast experiment, which was available to watch via the brands social media channels and website, did serve to give all who are part of the process their dues, sans having them all walk out at the end of a show. They each had their moment (hopefully willingly) in the spotlight.
As part of the Access-All-Areas event, the brand also scheduled a live video call for a lucky few (thousand) for the day of the show, so they in effect also became part of the audience, and history. They also won’t have to settle for just 15 minutes of fame, as an actual lucky few made it into print form, with duplications of the multi-screens printed onto micro-minis and baby T’s.
But tearing away from the screen (both the one in front of show-goers, and the one in their hands) to take in Martens latest offering for fall, it can safely be said that grunge is back. But the designer took the go-to animal coat and floral dress and merged them to create a hybridised Frankenstein look inspired by the 1990s period. leopard print fur was also ‘bonded then burnt out’ according to the show notes, with the technique revealing floral chiffon, unexpected for outerwear.
Diesel is of course known for its denim, but Glenn Martens wielded the power of innovative fabric development across all product areas. In his previous show last season fur was encased inside or melded into plastic. This season mesh replaced plastic to create diamond-shaped pockets which looked to be filled with tufts of fabric, an interesting way to take on the problem of fabric waste. Through re-purposing it into the design of new products, and actually creating a practical solution as in other industries old fabric is used for insulation. And at Diesel that same was true when it was worked into a padded jackets as wadding. Then, what appeared to be a glossy leather topcoat, was in fact coated denim and the creative directors take on the return to workwear was to apply ‘burn-out’ panels to tailored checks as a provocation to the corporate world.
THE BUZZWORDS
Watch party, Fantastic Mr. Fabric, grunge 3.0
THE SHOWSTOPPER
Not just ‘Insta-famous’ but now fashion famous as fans of the brand who participated in a livestream video call became immortalised forever in this fall 2024 look.
THE DIRECTION
THE QUOTE
Multiple layers – it’s what we all are”
Glenn Martens, Creative Director, Diesel
THE WRAP UP
Fashion shows have become as popular as film premiers and music concerts, with fans of mega-brands (who have strategically hired K-pop and Thai drama stars as ambassadors as they spotted the wave of change in hyper-fandom among Generation Z, who switched their allegiance from West to East after the demise of boy bands such as One Direction) stalking social media, or scouring the city for billboards, to find show locations and inevitably swarming them – in some cases causing dangerous levels of overcrowding. This season Glenn Martens decided to feed into that insatiable desire for more – access, behind-the-scenes, insider knowledge – and invited the cameras in.
This may soon be a path that others follow – going live with less scripted polish – but where will it lead, and is where it’s going next likely to lead to even more pressure on the shoulders of creative directors? Only time will tell with how Diesel plans to top this season’s social experiment.
