Michigan Avenue - Niche Media - Michigan Avenue magazine is a luxury lifestyle magazine centered around Chicago’s finest people, events, fashion, health & beauty, fine dining & more!
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/532497
michiganavemag.com 37 PhotograPhy by Conor Doherty Building Inspiration Taking cues from archiTecTure, max mara creaTive direcTor Ian GrIffIths unveils The label's laTesT masTerpiece. by adrienne gaffney Ian Griffiths spends a lot of time thinking about the Chicago woman's style. "She's corporate-oriented and wants to be perfect for every occasion," the creative director of Max Mara explains. "She's looking for those clothes that make her look perfect in every aspect of her life. Max Mara helps her to live it fully and gives her the confidence she needs to be on [display] all the time." Griffiths is the mastermind behind those fashions, bringing to the storied fashion house a bold creative vision paired with remarkable technical acumen. His most recent feat is creating the newest addition to Max Mara's handbag slate: the Whitney bag, inspired by Renzo Piano's design of the newly reopened Whitney Museum of American Art, and produced in collaboration with Piano himself. Working with the master architect came naturally to Griffiths, who studied the discipline before transitioning to fashion. That architecture background still resonates in his career, which utilizes many of the same fundamentals and skills. "I think rather like Ian Griffiths, the mastermind behind Max Mara's bold creative vision, studied architecture before transitioning to fashion. continued on page 38 STYLE Tastemaker