Ian Griffiths’ starting point for the Max Mara collection this season was the works of the Brontë sisters, in particular Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë and Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë. Specifically, he wanted to find the middle ground between Jane Eyre’s restraint and the burning passions of Catherine Earnshaw, the heroine of Heights. The show was aptly titled Untamed Heroine. Griffith’s masterstroke here was to not take his source inspirations literally. After all, Max Mara traffics not in 19th-century cosplay but in real, grown-up clothes for modern women with real, grown-up lives. That sounds like a no-brainer for luxury fashion but you’d be surprised by how underserved this category can sometimes be.
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In Griffiths’ hands, those literary references were transformed into clothing that was poetic but still rooted in practicality. As one would expect from Max Mara, the coats set the tone—inspired by Victorian greatcoats, they came long and sweeping, though never quite trailing, which looked powerful, but more importantly, not cumbersome. Waists were tightly cinched with double-belts for a flattering silhouette; trousers and skirts in generous proportions lent a purposeful stride to their wearers. Capes and hoods and leather gloves gave off a sense of drama, but these were also pieces that will easily translate off the runway. A couple of hooded coats in thick grey knit and dark olive cashmere looked especially alluring on the chilly February morning the show was held.
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The palette was extremely restrained, and all the better for it in terms of telling a concise, compelling story. It started with a very deep, very romantic burgundy before morphing into the distinctive shades of grey associated with gloomy British skies and dramatic Yorkshire cliffs. From there, it segued into the rich browns and camels that are a Max Mara signature, into the mossy greens of country fields and forests, before finally settling into an inky black that gave the eveningwear portion a high dose of glamour without it being in-your-face theatrical.