Brighter Days: An Afternoon of Frolicking Through California’s Wild Fields

A sun-soaked fashion story is set in California’s super bloom, blending vintage Americana with natural wildflower beauty.

Each spring, in a rare and fleeting phenomenon known as the ‘super bloom,’ the California countryside erupts into a kaleidoscope of color. Rolling hills and windswept plains are set ablaze with wildflowers, creating a surreal, dreamlike landscape of nature. It’s within this vibrant spectacle, near the natural sag pond of Elizabeth Lake, nestled in the northern reaches of the Sierra Pelona Mountains, that a sartorial story unfolds steeped in nostalgia, freedom, and sunlit reverie.

Photographed by Charles Lu and styled by Soaree Cohen, Brighter Days pays tribute to the beauty of spring and the spirit of youth that blooms alongside it. Models Bronson Garel, Brett Prendergast, and Sandra Diola dance through the floral fields, their silhouettes echoing the sway of petals in the breeze. The light catches on velvet, silk, and satin as the camera frames each spontaneous gesture in the golden haze of the afternoon.

The aesthetic unfolds like a scene from Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, a cinematic homage to a bygone California dream with a wardrobe of retro-inflected pieces; think sharply tailored vintage suits in sun-washed tones, soft silk shirts, and high-waisted trousers. Designers like The Row, Johanna Ortiz, Bode, Christopher Esber, and Etro lend their vision to the narrative, where timelessness meets bohemian cool, in a world where time slows, beauty reigns, and every step through the blooms feels like a page torn from a warm, wistful dream.

Photographs by CHARLES LU. Styling by SOAREE COHEN. Makeup: Monique Mazer. Hair: Terri Walker. Deputy Editor: Pam Quiñones. Talent: Brett Prendergast, Bronson Garel, and Sandra Diola. Photographer’s Assistant: Caci. Stylist’s Assistant: Jessica Zumwait.