Martin Margiela & Rei Kawakubo
Martin Margiela & Rei Kawakubo
The selections in this screening address the idea of anonymity and knowledge shown through biographical films, displayed in their most comprehensive range of expression. Designers Martin Margiela and Rei Kawakubo prefer to be known through their creative output, as well as for their subdued public identity and need for privacy.
Reiner Holzemer’s Martin Margiela: In His Own Words offers an exclusive look at the designer’s career and creative choices through his own narration, often framed with the presence of the artist’s hands at his desk. On the other hand, Paul G Roberts’s Rei Kawakubo—Renegades is a riotous amalgamation of footage and soundbites that traces the designer’s life and career through the contemporary visual language of an internet video. The pairing examines how moving image practitioners build mediatised personas and invite audiences to reflect on the possibilities and limitations of biographical films in contributing to the designers’ cult-like statuses in the fashion world.
About the Director
Reiner Holzemer (b. 1958, Germany) captures the portraits of some of the world’s most prominent figures in filmmaking, photography, and fashion design. His documentaries include William Eggleston—Photographer (2007), The David Lynch of Photography (2009), and Dries (2017). He has been a member of the German Society for Photography since 2002.
Image at top: Reiner Holzemer. Martin Margiela: In His Own Words, 2019. Photo: Courtesy of Dogwoof