Review of Max Mara Spring 2025 Ad Campaign by Photographer Craig McDean with model Vittoria Ceretti
Max Mara evokes lightness and mathematical elegance in its new Spring 2025 campaign, captured by photographer Craig McDean.
In crafting the collection, creative director Ian Griffiths drew inspiration from the 4th-century Neoplatonist philosopher, astronomer, and mathematician Hypatia, one of the first well-documented woman mathematicians and an influential force in Alexandria during her time. The designs evoke her spirit both in the subtle nods to the draped clothing of her era and in the mathematical precision of their tailoring.
The campaign imagery points to this narrative only subtly, with McDean capturing model Vittoria Ceretti in an abstract space of lines, angles, and light.
On the one hand, the conceptual simplicity of the campaign might feel like a missed opportunity to draw more deeply on the historical narrative and persona it references; on the other, its directness and simple elegance are part and parcel of the brand’s consistent and cohesive visual identity. Even when Griffiths draws on a particular historical figure or literary era, he does so subtly, always incorporating it into a design vision that is first and foremost focused on the timeless Italian elegance of the Max Mara heritage. The brand’s campaigns, which center the collection itself far beyond all else, follow this practice.
The campaign thus invites us to pay closer attention to the collection itself, seeing in all its beautifully considered and crafted details a timeless story, another chapter in the ever-unfolding narrative that is Max Mara.
Max Mara Creative Director | Ian Griffiths
Photographer | Craig McDean
Model | Vittoria Ceretti
Stylist | Tonne Goodman
Hair | Esther Langham
Makeup | Mark Carrasquillo
Casting Director | Piergiorgio Del Moro
Set Designer | Piers Hanmer