Known for its innovative use of fabrics and more contemporary silhouettes, Sportmax is Max Mara’s cooler, slightly more daring younger sister. Long-time creative director Grazia Malagoli’s Spring/Summer 2027 collection was no different, complete with interesting fabrics, minimal, athletic silhouettes, and a sparse, well-chosen color palette. The guest list was almost as well chosen as the colors, even leading to an iconic, viral reunion between Gossip Girl stars Leighton Meester and Kelly Rutherford.
Malagoli is an expert at choosing her innovations carefully, focusing on two or three key twists. Her chosen experiments this season were undoubtedly gauze and chrome, two highly contrasting materials. The combination of these seemingly opposed materials works beautifully, perhaps because both allow Malagoli to play with light, which bounces off the chrome and filters through the gauze. The opening look, for example, features a giant loop of chrome used as a belt defining the waistline of a layered beige coat. The stark simplicity of the chrome complements the busy, multi-layered neckline of the coat, making the look lean slightly futuristic. The look also features long, baggy trousers, the bottom half of which are made of gauze and cinched at the ankle by a suede corded sandal. The styling trick references the belt at the waist, making the outfit both cohesive and innovative without being glaringly futuristic.
This knack for subtle innovation permeates Malagoli’s collection. At times, particularly in the second half of the collection, the pieces skew slightly beachier. Look thirty-four, for example, is made up of a floor-length brown jumpsuit with a deep, plunging V-neckline that could easily work as a beach cover-up. The look still feels cohesive with the heavier, more transitional first half of the collection thanks to its long, flowing silhouette and the addition of sporty, reflective sunglasses. The sunglasses play with light in the same way that the chrome bangles seen earlier in the collection do, creating a natural through-line while still allowing room for variation. In this way, Malagoli marks herself out as a highly nuanced designer who understands the importance of cohesion not only in a single look but in a single collection as well.
Another example of Malagoli’s knack for innovating cohesively on a theme is look twenty-three, undoubtedly the most romantic ensemble of the collection. Once again playing with light, Malagoli layers a white, high-necked gauze sheath over a lace spaghetti-strap dress. The dress’s deep V-neckline is referenced in look thirty-four, while the high, layered neckline of the gauze sheath harkens back to the coat in the opening look.
Malagoli’s penchant for twists only falls flat a few times throughout the collection. Look four, for example, sees the oft-repeated chrome bangles layered both at the neck and at the waist, cinching in a brick-red leather raincoat. While the raincoat’s hood adds a signature sporty flair to the look, it is swallowed slightly by the matching oversized jacket layered on top. The look’s true weakness, however, is the capri trousers, which are slim-fitting and cropped just below the knee. The combination of the capris, the oval, CBK-esque sunglasses, and the oversized blazer leans much more TikTok-contemporary than any of the other looks. The overall effect is overdone, both in terms of the outfit’s styling and its individual elements. Similarly, some of the collection’s more minimal looks, such as look eighteen, look slightly out of place in a collection defined by layers of light, fabric, and accessories.
Overall, Malagoli’s collection marks her out as a designer who wields the weapon of innovation with skill and precision. Never gimmicky, her variations on a theme consistently feel sophisticated, contemporary, and cohesive. Sometimes, the classics are the freshest innovations of all.
