The single largest auction of archive Maison Margiela will be going under the hammer in Paris on January 27th. The auction features pieces from the first six years of the house, from 1988 to 1994, and all of the pieces are from the personal archive of the sisters Angela and Elena Picozzi, who gathered them over the decades inspired by their mother Graziella Picozzi, a key figure in the Italian fashion industry and early supporter of Martin Margiela.

“The meeting between our mother, Graziella, and Martin Margiela was a fundamental moment for both of them. We always considered these items an important part of fashion history that ought to be protected,” said Angela and Elena Picozzi.

Many pieces from Margiela’s legendary SS90 show are included in the auction, such as outsized vests worn as dresses, cigarette-shouldered suits with removable sleeves and painted canvas jackets. Other important pieces include ‘curtain’ skirt ensembles (FW91), Caban jackets (various collections), lurex and wool sweaters (FW90-91) and priests’ cassocks (FW 92-93).

Alongside the clothing, many of Martin Margiela’s own documents and ephemera will be going on sale, such as original paper patterns and complete folders of facsimile sketches for collections.

Free public viewings of the Margiela archive, hosted by Kerry Taylor chez Maurice à Paris, will be happening at 81, boulevard Voltaire, Paris 75011 on the 25th and 26th of January, followed by the auction on the 27th.