Spring was Adam Selman’s sixth season — hardly a canon of work to judge a career by — but in his brief time in business he’s demonstrated a consistently unique point of view with range. It’s witty, gleefully scrappy and, most impressively, distinct in its expression of motifs — Nineties streetwear and club culture, sport and girly edge — that are quite popular with his peers.
His two big ideas for spring were exposure — “Seeing things you’re not supposed to see,” he said — and Hawaii, where he traveled earlier this year and was struck by the flowers in the area of Kauai that was home to the Seventies hippie refuge and sometimes nudist colony Taylor Camp. “I wanted color and fun and ended up in a little bit of a cultish place,” he said of the collection, which reflected a new refinement without killing the vibe.
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The show started with stark-white looks featuring inside-out elements, such as the pockets on a pair of clean white pants and Fifties crinoline skirts fashioned into beachy dresses. Then Selman built in color with big, bright florals, trimming denim jumpsuits, rompers and slit bell-bottom jeans with appliqués and showing clean slip dresses in illustrated flower prints. The jumpsuit and overall shapes were spare but groovy, a clever combination of minimal workwear influence and naughty flirtation. More festive and free-spirited were the crinolines, cut as cute cropped camisoles and riffs on hula skirts, as well as the three-tired black tulle dress that would be stunning for date night at the Hawaiian beach cult.