Cowboy hats and champagne: Brandon Maxwell channels Jackie O via Marfa, Texas
Why wait for Netflix to commission a documentary about you when you can do it yourself? That’s what American fashion designer Brandon Maxwell has done.
His 30-minute film about the one-month self-imposed residency he and his team underwent in Marfa, Texas, far away from the hustle of New York, offers a much clearer understanding of what drove this millennial-minded designer to start creating collections when he was doing just fine as a stylist to the likes of Lady Gaga.
The short film contains all the classic American tropes. It’s the story of a kid who grew up in Texas, draping his best friend with sheets, who went to art school and then moved to New York. Now an established designer, the stress of creating collection after collection in the non-stop cycle of seasons has clearly gotten to him.
Several times in the film Maxwell refers to escaping from the noise and the pressure; his time in Marfa is meant to inspire his new collection, but also give him space to reflect on his designs and slow down his creative process.
Maxwell and his team soak in Marfa’s famed art scene, canvasing the opinions of female artists about fashion. “Would you wear a gown made of cotton?” he asks one such artist.
The clothes that Maxwell makes are not necessarily the ones you’d find in Marfa, Texas, on a typical Tuesday. His woman is usually “done”: hair perfectly in place, with a face full of make-up and a propensity for body-conscious dresses that show off their curves in a way that’s not necessarily suited for the desert.
Maxwell is a big-picture kind of designer. With each collection he starts with the woman – in this case he’s inspired by Jackie O, Lady Bird Johnson and Texan socialite Lynn Wyatt (all women who knew a thing or two about being coiffed on a daily basis) – and he dreams and tells stories while his team sketch, interpreting his musings steeped with glamour and memory.
When the invitation to Maxwell’s spring 2019 invitation arrived, stamped on the sole of Lucchese cowboy boots, you knew that Texas was embedded in the collection. His venue was a classic car warehouse in New York, filled with pickup trucks, flowers, hamburger stands and seats made up of pink coolers and lawn chairs.
His colourful and glamorous collection was full of sunset pinks, big skirts and clear Perspex cases, enshrining either red felt cowboy hats or bottles of champagne – all of it retail gold for his loyal clientele, who want elegant but vibrant clothes.
Encouraging hollers and yells of adoration met the models as they sashayed down the runway with more fun and confidence that you usually see on the New York runways.
Only when you read the show notes do you discover that Maxwell partnered with Kia to donate the prop cars to teachers in Marfa after the show, in a surprising acknowledgement of the socio-economic disparity between the visitors to, and citizens of, the city of Marfa.
Fashion with a heart is becoming standard practice, (see Balenciaga and its partnership with the World Food Programme, or Gucci’s long-standing charity work with Unicef) and as with everything he does Maxwell’s approach is genuine and understated, a young designer doing it in his own, authentic way.
“He just wants to be remembered,” comments his best friend in the film. There is a sincerity of approach with him that is rarely seen these days. And Maxwell will have no problem being remembered if his supportive, loved up community and customers are anything to go by.
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