Glenn Martens walked in the Diesel showroom fresh from his first appearance at the Met Gala earlier this month, still enthusing about the experience and having no less than pop icon Kylie Minogue as his date. For the occasion, the Diesel creative director also custom dressed hot young couple Dove Cameron and Damiano David, Måneskin’s front man, for an outing that accrued plenty of clicks on social media and loudly restated the brand’s democratic message: even when Diesel goes red carpet, it speaks to different generations.
Even more than his collections, the inclusive attitude Martens has been reaffirming at the brand through talent choices, show formats and engaging campaigns is proving to be key to his approach. In his hands, pre-collections are instrumental in further amplifying this purpose, embracing a wider Diesel community with extra unfussy pieces.
Hence, for resort 2025 Martens continued the tradition of trickling down the concepts he previously presented in a showy way on the catwalk. The layering of personalities and fabrics paraded in February were here rendered in a more straightforward way, but still injected with the same penchant for trompe l’oeil effects, coating and denim manipulation.
“Everything you see is not what it seems,” Martens said during the walk-through. “Is it tailoring? Is it underwear? Is it distressed or jacquard? It’s all about the illusion of stereotypes.”
Sleek and elongated tailoring opened the lineup, with wool pieces playing with matte and shiny finishes by being screen-coated on the front, and Martens’ take on three-piece suits coming in denim printed with pinstripe motifs.
In his mission to revisit classic design archetypes with the fabric of preference chez Diesel, Martens reworked relaxed coats and streetwear staples such as hoodies and baggy pants in denim boucle, which easily stood out and enriched the collection’s textures.
As the lineup progressed, looks became sexier, with belt bags turned into zippered tops and miniskirts, and louder via neon furry trimming on knits; popping prints ranging from glaring spotlights and tattoos to floral motifs, and body-hugging jersey separates with binding in contrasting colors nodding to sportswear or the lingerie world. The latter was reinforced with the addition of denim-looking underwear pieces and leggings, which are set to offer youngsters the first touch point to the brand.