Art Of The Coat

Max Mara celebrated its signature piece with an expansive exhibition that spanned seven decades.

- Ian Lee In Seoul

If there is a singular item that Italian fashion house Max Mara has become synonymous with, it is certainly the coat. And so, it is only fitting that the brand celebrated its illustrious 66-year-history with an exhibition simply and titled… Coats! After hitting Berlin, Tokyo, Beijing and Moscow, the extensive collection most recently travelled to Seoul’s DDP (Dongdaemun Design Plaza), where the exhibition was unveiled at the end of November.

Laura Lusuardi, the brand’s fashion coordinator, told us in an exclusive interview ahead of its launch: “The city of Seoul brings together tradition and innovation, just like Max Mara does. We’re both very similar, and that is why we make good partners.”

And there’re more ways in which the city and the house are alike, as the latter expresses in the exhibition’s main dome-shaped structure, and a specially created coat design. Lusuardi explained: “The special coat is minimal and in camel. It’s inspired by the Korean Yugi bowl. The exhibition’s main dome structure and digital installation, by Korean artist

Yiyun Kang, also brings to mind the Yugi bowl – a bronzeware piece that was associated with royal families, and is still passed down generations today. It is always in use, and a combination of tradition and innovation, like the Max Mara coat.”