Mood board: In recent seasons, brands have been recalibrating their concept of sexuality. Post #MeToo, as the awareness of the male gaze has become heightened, male designers and women alike are questioning how we can be both provocative and powerful. Max Mara knows strong dressing inside out. Its 101801 wool and cashmere coat has been a powerful woman’s wardrobe mainstay since 1981. Glamour was a particular style note of this decade, and it’s a look Italian brand’s are well versed in. See Versace, Cavalli and Fendi. This was the main inspiration behind Max Mara’s A/W 2019 offering, with creative director Ian Griffiths referencing Linda Evangelista as an autumn icon. Silhouettes were strong, wider, boxier and leggier. Utilitarian and executive. Imagined in shades of black, caramel and beige, with pops of highly saturated colour and a swathe of sensual animal prints.
Best in show: Max Mara is the progenitor of beige, and it’s the tone dominating the A/W 2019 catwalk and the street style scene outside the shows. Griffith opened the show with three models strutting down the catwalk together, wearing wool blazers, mohair cardigans and knee high boots, in monochromatic cyan, cerulean and corn yellow. The proceeding beige oversized jackets, houndstooth coats and wide tweed trousers also made for punchy power dressing.
Scene setting: Max Mara switched up its usual show venue location, bringing guests to a vast subterranean atrium at Universita Luigi Bocconi. The stark space was built by Italian practice Grafton Architects in 2008. When the women attend this year's graduate, we know what they’ll want to be wearing.
Max Mara A/W 2019.
Max Mara A/W 2019.
Max Mara A/W 2019.
Max Mara A/W 2019.
-
25 artists reimagine the teapot at Milan Design Week 2025Come to Loewe’s cross-cultural tea party: pots of fun in Milan as artists, designers and architects celebrate the universal comfort of tea
-
This brutalist apartment in Barcelona is surprisingly soft and gentleThe renovated brutalist apartment by Cometa Architects is a raw yet gentle gem in the heart of the city
-
Corner Corner may be London's most unique entertainment destination yetThe newly-opened venue combines food, jazz and—yes—urban farming beneath one sprawling roof
-
The story behind Max Mara’s sensual Lisbon resort showDrawing inspiration from the author, intellectual and activist Natália Correia, Ian Griffiths tells Wallpaper* the story behind his sensually minded Max Mara Resort 2023 collection, shown last night in the gardens of Lisbon’s Calouste Gulbenkian Collection
-
Milan Fashion Week Men’s S/S 2023: Fendi to PradaFrom Prada’s exploration of archetypal menswear garments to JW Anderson’s much-anticipated debut in the city, the best of Milan Fashion Week Men’s S/S 2023, as it happens
-
Milan Fashion Week A/W 2022: Prada to Bottega VenetaIn this extended report, Scarlett Conlon reports live from the Milan Fashion Week A/W 2022 shows, with rolling coverage as they take place on the runway
-
Milan Fashion Week A/W 2021: designers riff on romp and relaxationMilan Fashion Week offered a wardrobe for life after lockdown, by brands including Fendi, Prada, Salvatore Ferragamo, Valentino and Giorgio Armani
-
The filmic vision of Paris’ virtual men’s fashion weekTake an in-depth look at the trends of Paris' fashion week for Spring/Summer 2021, where brands turned to the moving image to express their collections virtually
-
Giorgio Armani A/W 2020 Milan Fashion Week Women's -
Bottega Veneta A/W 2020 Milan Fashion Week Women's -
Ports 1961 A/W 2020 Milan Fashion Week Women's
