Brandon Maxwell

If you are after modern American eveningwear with serious construction, the answer leans yes. Maxwell launched his women's ready-to-wear label in 2015 with a focus on craftsmanship, designing the entire collection in New York City. He famously builds his pieces by draping rather than sketching, to ensure an ideal fit, which is part of what you are paying for in a gown.

Brandon Maxwell is an American designer best known for his luxury women's ready-to-wear label, with a particular reputation for evening wear and the billowing silk gowns that close his runway shows. His Fall/Winter 2019 show, for instance, opened with daywear and finished with a sweeping silk ball gown. He is also widely known as Lady Gaga's longtime stylist and fashion director.

The two go back to Maxwell's early styling days. He began assisting Nicola Formichetti in 2010, who was Lady Gaga's stylist at the time, and through that work he was introduced to Gaga. In 2012 Maxwell took on the role of her fashion director, and he later dressed her for the 2019 Met Gala.

Brandon Maxwell designs the entire collection in New York City, where the label is based. That local focus is a point of pride for the brand, and it reflects the hands-on, draping-led approach Maxwell uses to construct his pieces.

The label was founded in 2015 by Brandon Maxwell, who is its founder and creative director. He debuted the women's ready-to-wear collection that year in New York at Mr. Chow, after years working in the industry as a stylist.

Beyond the craftsmanship, the industry has recognized him repeatedly. Maxwell won the 2019 CFDA Award for Womenswear and was named the 2020 AAFA Designer of the Year, and he was a finalist for the 2016 LVMH Prize. In the week after one show he even generated the highest earned media value during New York Fashion Week, ahead of Ralph Lauren and Tom Ford.

The label has a notably high-profile following. Michelle Obama, Jennifer Lawrence, Oprah Winfrey, Nicole Kidman, Viola Davis, Karlie Kloss, Queen Rania of Jordan and Kerry Washington, among many others, have all worn Maxwell's designs.

The collection is sold in retail stores around the world, including Saks, Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus, Moda Operandi, Harvey Nichols and Harrods. For a major piece such as a gown, it is worth trying it on in person where you can, since Maxwell designs so much of his work around fit.

Yes. Maxwell appeared as a judge on the 2019 re-launch of Project Runway on Bravo, which broadened his public profile well beyond fashion-industry circles. He has also worked as a photographer and director, having co-directed campaign films for his own label.

He does. In 2021 Maxwell was named creative director for two of Walmart's elevated fashion labels, Free Assembly and Scoop, where he oversees four seasonal collections a year. So his work now spans both his own luxury house and more accessible price points.