August 14, 2019 830 PM
MARFA – Marfa is featured in a national Kia commercial with fashion designer Brandon Maxwell.
The minute-long commercial shows Maxwell driving by the Stardust sign west of town, Boys2Men restaurant, The Get Go (shot through a window from a makeshift diner inside Ashley Rowe’s store), and Marfa High School.
Maxwell, a native Texan, designed his Spring/Summer 2019 collection during a month-long residency in Marfa last year. The vibrant collection made its runway debut a few months later during New York Fashion Week.
“I came here at a time when I needed space,” Maxwell said in the commercial. “I wanted to be immersed by the land and the sky. I needed to meet people whose stories inspired me, who lived a life.”
He returned this summer to film a commercial featuring Marfa and its residents. Some of those residents include Lost Horse Saloon’s Ty Mitchell, The Water Stop’s Rebecca Bockelie with her daughter, and artist Johnny Sufficool. There are brief scenes capturing glimpses of the Marfa lifestyle: ranchers herding cattle, kids walking a dog, and a guy riding a horse.
“So many people come in to take a picture, drive by and leave,” Maxwell said in the commercial. “It was important for me to not just take from it.”
His time in Marfa left a lasting impression that motivated Maxwell to partnered with Kia to give Marfa ISD a donation of $100,000 and a new Kia Telluride Luxury SUV, the same type of car he’s driving in the commercial.
“I wanted to give back to other young people who dream, because every person that you see in this world was once that kid in the playground,” Maxwell said in the commercial.
As he says those words, students are hanging out in front of Hunter’s Gym and running down Gonzales Street. The commercial ends with a black screen and the words: “Kia and Brandon Maxwell are proud to contribute to the schools of Marfa, Texas. Give it everything.”
