Max Mara’s Stars and Stripes

Max Mara’s spring/summer 2016 collection was an edgy, punk version of life at sea. Brightly colored eyebrows and faux hawks were the make-up and hairstyle of choice at Milan Fashion Week to illustrate a line partly inspired by sea fables like Sinbad the Sailor, Bluebeard, and Jonah and the Whale, and the “deceptive artlessness” of Jean Cocteau’s drawings. Filled with the dominant design of stars and stripes in bold colors of black, white, red, yellow, and blue, set to the backdrop of sights through a cartoon porthole, the naval cues were everywhere. Trench coats and blazers were buttoned unevenly, T-shirts over extra-long-sleeved shirts, and matelot, created the edgy maritime look.