Maison Margiela and Gentle Monster unveil their fourth collaboration, released October 29.

Maison Margiela and Gentle Monster unveil their fourth collaborative collection on October 29. Centered on “Deconstruction,” the collection proposes a selection of sunglasses and eyewear, elevating familiar shapes while distorting others.

The full collection comprises 43 sunglasses and 25 optical frames, for a total of 68 SKUs. A series of deconstructed styles, in which elements appear crushed and modified, articulate the creative language of the collaboration. Oversized eyewear with exaggerated volume conceal the face from others while augmenting the wearer’s field of vision. Narrow, upswept frames appear in leather wrapped tightly as in Second Skin. Across the collection, the Maison Margiela signature appears at the temples: the four white stitches. On slim styles, a new branding appears, with the stitches woven as if floating over the frames’ edges.

Directed by Alex Prager, the campaign’s short film turns its lens on the uncanny yet extraordinary moments in everyday life. A protagonist has just 10 minutes to meet someone. We follow her through an ever-shifting world, where the eyewear’s silhouettes appear through series of distinct characters she encounters as she rushes frenetically across the city.

To mark the fourth collaboration, special pop-up spaces open in eight cities around the world. Extending the collection’s core concept into spatial experience, each space showcases an unfinished aesthetic through unstable, irregular forms. 

In Seoul, an exclusive performance event is held to celebrate the launch. Choreographer and creative director Damien Jalet and artist Ian McMahon, translate deconstruction into movement. Body, space, object, and light collide and reshape one another, taking apart existing structures and relationships to rebuild them in new forms.