Max Mara Channels 'Nonconformist Glamour' of Pioneering Women at Milan Show

Max Mara's latest runway show at Milan Fashion Week favored wearable elegance over spectacle, drawing on what the brand described as the "nonconformist glamour" of pioneering women such as aviator Amelia Earhart, according to a report by The Guardian.

The collection featured chore jackets and loose-fit trousers alongside sturdy block-heeled boots, crisp white shirts and capacious suede handbags, rendered in a palette of sand, chalk, grey and black. British designer Ian Griffiths, who has led the Italian house since 1987, said the show deliberately avoided shock value in favor of pieces viewers could recognize in their own wardrobes.

A Philosophy of Wearability

"I hope everyone watching this show can recognise something of themselves in what they see," Griffiths said, according to the report, adding that he did not intend the remark as a criticism of other brands but as a reflection on how much of fashion can make people feel excluded based on body type, age or size. Trousers were cut pleated and roomy, and skirts were designed to be elegant without becoming impractical.

Griffiths said backstage that the true measure of the collection would come not from the catwalk itself but from seeing women wearing the clothes on the street, describing that everyday visibility as "the real presentation" behind the show.