Brandon Maxwell Blooms Lilac Flowers at NY Fashion Week
NEW YORK — Home is a sanctuary for Brandon Maxwell, and he showed it through his use of his mother’s favorite color, purple, throughout his Spring/Summer collection at New York Fashion Week.
Tuesday’s show at Christie’s New York in Rockefeller Plaza kicked off with moody blue lighting and birds chirping like it was just before dawn. Atmospheric lighting gradually changed to an airy lilac hue reminiscent of a rural sunrise.
By choosing pastels, layering and relaxed symmetrical silhouettes, Maxwell focuses on soft feminine beauty themes. He mixed neutrals with pastels like baby blues, sage greens and blush pinks to make them staples in women’s closets. The show opened with a blush pink layered look.
Texas native Maxwell said the inspiration for the collection came when he left New York City.
“So[the collection]is still inspired by the people who raised me, because I think a lot of the things in this collection were kind of unconscious memories that were drawn from my time. Because I think, in the stillness outside the city, it brought me back to where I belonged, “my youth and what I loved,” Maxwell said.
He said it was reflected in the clothes and the vibe of the late 90s and early 2000s. “My family is always there,” he said.
Maxwell’s nostalgia is reflected in a denim overalls-like look with a matching black sequined top embroidered with yellow sunflowers and a plunging V-neckline. Other looks included wide-tanned cargo her pants paired with a strapless halter top layered under her white cotton tank top. The most notable ’90s-inspired look layered a sheer, full-length tulle dress over a white graphic tank.
The show concluded with another slouchy layered look featuring a floor-length silver skirt resembling a Monet painting paired with a white T-shirt, rose pink blazer, and chunky platform heels. .
In the front row sat Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, TV personality La La Anthony, supermodel Karlie Kloss, and singer Kelsey Ballerini.
“[Maxwell]got it. He’s versatile and fits a curvy body type like mine, which I like. He understands that,” Anthony said.