Derek Lam’s American Reinterpretation

Derek Lam’s show notes presented his intent before the event began:

“New York Heroines,” read the title. It then went on to list the women who have clearly inspired his Fall 2015 theme, citing such greats as Diane Keaton, Mia Farrow and Katharine Hepburn.

“A modern interpretation of American style,” the notes concluded. And so it was.

There was the trench — but the collar exploded upwards. There was the pant suit — but with implications of “corporate” removed. Also modified but still present were the pencil skirt, the statement jacket, the black dress and everything else that one somehow magically collects by the time she’s grown up and finally made it — where by virtue of her closet alone, she’s a success. If the American Dream is having it all then American style is dressing like it.

Sure, the seventies were hinted. At this point, where are they not? But because Derek Lam cited women to begin with as opposed to pulling from some general vision of what that overarching decade has been romanticized as, his collection speaks much larger volumes about who his women are right now and how they will continue to dress. How they’ll evolve. How he’ll help them.

She who shops at Derek Lam is surely aware of trends. She knows that while burnt orange has had its moment on flared pants prior to Lam’s reinterpretation, she’ll choose to buy it for the sake of flattering her own silhouette — not to satiate some nostalgic craving.

What Derek Lam put forth was the exact thing that those who search for the deeper meaning (in addition something visually wonderful) from fashion week have been seeking. That is: beautiful clothes, pristine execution, something to covet and something to think about.

And he accomplishes this because he’s smart. I don’t mean that in the way of someone who plans a collection for the sake of sales — although let’s not pretend it isn’t on his or his buyers’ minds. This is a business, not just the wearable art world. But in addition to being a designer, Derek Lam is an architect. He not only builds, he creates, and he does so with the eye of that rare person who is at once mathematically minded and creatively gifted. That’s having it all too, isn’t it? American dream, American style.

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Images via Style.com