Max Mara A/W 2020 Milan Fashion Week Women's

Mood board: The sea has proved inspiration for designers for A/W 2020. Take Simone Rocha’s collection, inspired by the 1904 play, Riders to the Sea by John Millington Synge, which had a shipwreck sensibility, featuring rope like Aran knits, trailing pearls and fishing net inspired bags. Max Mara creative director Ian Griffiths imagined his intelligent, executive women — who favour sharp pinstripe tailoring and the brand’s classic camel coat — dreaming of an Arctic open sea adventure, and her accompanying dreamt up outfits had a whimsical, nautical nod. This meant an offering in deep ocean blue, browns and greys that featured frothy ruffles, nautical stripes and technical waterproof nylons, from frilled shirting to puff sleeve divers coats (padded with luxurious cashmere fleece), tactile teddy bear fur jackets to lean velvet dresses with beaded chain details.
Best in show: Leg of mutton sleeve shirting nodded to one of autumn’s most enduring constructions, and had a bold eighties attitude. A sweeping navy and camel stripe coat in teddy bear fur would take any Max Mara woman straight from the office to portside-embarkation and a pinstripe jersey suit with tasseled toggles would ensure she sets sail in crease free tailoring.
Finishing touches: Nautical rope belts were used to cinch the waists of poufy sleeve overcoats and tied around high waisted tailored trousers, while an array of beanie hats had a sailor-chic all-aboard sensibility.
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
-
The bespoke Jaguar E-Type GTO melds elements from every era of the classic sports car
ECD Automotive Design’s one-off commission caters to a client who wanted to combine the greatest hits of Jaguar’s E-Type along with modern conveniences and more power
-
Casa Sanlorenzo debuts in Venice as a new hub for contemporary art
The luxury yachting leader unveils a stunning new space in a palazzo restored by Piero Lissoni – where art, innovation, and sustainability come together
-
Once vacant, London's grand department stores are getting a new lease on life
Thanks to imaginative redevelopment, these historic landmarks are being rebonr as residences, offices, gyms and restaurants. Here's what's behind the trend
-
50 years of Santoni, the footwear brand steeped in Italian craft, celebrated in a new book
Inside ‘Santoni Meraviglia’, a richly illustrated new tome published by Assouline that tells the story behind the Italian brand’s meticulously crafted footwear
-
‘The White Lotus’ meets La Dolce Vita: inside Mytheresa and Dolce & Gabbana’s Taormina takeover
Wallpaper* travels to Taormina, Sicily, where a two-day celebration of the latest Dolce & Gabbana x Mytheresa collaboration centred around San Domenico Palace, A Four Seasons Hotel – the filming location of ‘The White Lotus’ season two
-
‘A fuller and silkier sillage’: Acqua di Parma dials up the intensity of Blu Mediterraneo
As Acqua di Parma unveils its new Blu Mediterraneo: La Riserva collection – a reinterpretation of three quintessential scents – Wallpaper* dives deeper into the story behind its making
-
What does a Renzo Piano-designed handbag look like? Max Mara’s ‘Whitney’ has the answer
In 2015, Max Mara launched the ‘Whitney’ bag, made in collaboration with Renzo Piano Building Workshop to celebrate the opening of New York’s Whitney Museum. Now, a series of reissues celebrate ten years of the institution
-
Milan exhibition celebrates 20 years of Armani Privé: ‘Haute couture is fashion when it becomes art’
Hosted at the Tadao Ando-designed Armani/Silos, ‘Giorgio Armani Privé 2005-2025, Twenty Years of Haute Couture’ displays an expansive collection of the Italian designer’s showstopping haute couture creations
-
At Davines HQ, a beauty revolution is taking root
Wallpaper* returns to Davines HQ in Parma, Italy, where a revolution in regenerative farming meets with the brand’s commitment to incredible haircare
-
Highlights from the transporting Cruise 2026 runway shows
The Cruise 2026 season continued last night with Maria Grazia Chiuri’s Roman homecoming at Dior, the latest in a series of jet-setting destination runway shows from fashion’s biggest houses
-
The best fashion moments at Milan Design Week 2025
Scarlett Conlon discovers the finest fashion moments at Salone del Mobile and Milan Design Week 2025, from Loewe’s artist-designed teapots to The Row’s first home collection