Maria McManus Resort 2024

Maria McManus’s whole ethos revolves around sustainability and the environment, but it was also the unexpected inspiration behind her very colorful and joyful resort collection. “A while back there was a conversation about the desert bloom in California; how there was so much rain over the winter in the deserts that masses of wildflowers bloomed,” the designer said during an appointment in her Manhattan showroom. She was “intrigued” and kept researching it, eventually coming across the Desert X installation by Diana Campbell. “She uses art as a way to look around the world and try to understand the world,” McManus added, clearly finding a common thread with her own practice. “So that was the genesis of the collection; the desert vibe influenced the color palette.” Shades of “tan and sand” laid the groundwork for pieces in bright turquoise and lilac. Despite its lofty inspiration, McManus’s resort collection is grounded in supremely wearable pieces in her signature eco-conscious materials: the desert blooms manifested in a floral print on lilac cotton that she turned into an easy pair of pajama-esque trousers, a shirt dress, and a cool bandana. Other standouts included a white coat in a textured organic cotton that resembled fur but had the ease and comfort of a bathrobe, a long-sleeve maxi turtleneck knit dress (made from 80% FSC-certified viscose), and a double-breasted corduroy suit in ecru made from “partially organic cotton.”