The conversation about to show or not to show — and how to show — has gotten to Derek Lam, who decided that maybe the runway isn’t the best outlet for his message. His collections have been some of the best on the New York stage in recent seasons despite never having been highly editorial or theatrically charged. Rather, they are beautiful presentations of clothes that lucky women with great taste and money to spend will buy and wear for their real lives. Lam can reach those customers without a catwalk or a megamarketing event that comes at a hefty price. So he downscaled, inviting three groups of 20 or so editors and retailers to view the collection up close in the penthouse of the Greenwich Hotel, where he talked through his inspiration and process. It was lovely and personal and shed far more light on a fantastic, succinct collection than eight minutes darting down a runway would.
Georgia O’Keeffe was Lam’s main inspiration, for her personality, style and remarkable career of “taking one thing and looking at it again and again,” said Lam. “That’s something that is very fulfilling to me as a designer.” He borrowed lightly from O’Keeffe’s monastic way of dressing and the arid colors of her New Mexico home and treated them with a modern, considered hand. A black eyelet voile pleated blouse was tucked into a gorgeous natural washed-cotton-twill full skirt with a raw hem. A coatdress came in rose-colored suede and an ivory crepe T-shirt dress was shown with a fringed scarf, a recurring accent piece that infused the lineup with a subtle Western flare.
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Lam noted that spring collections pose a unique set of challenges. “You can’t hide using furs and heavy woolens and coats,” he said. “You really have to think about cottons and linens, which can look plain or too simple.” The lineup was anchored in simplicity and a chicly rustic, all-American hand, using blown-up patchwork as decoration and heartland cloths, such as crumpled sheet linen, for a puff-sleeve dress. It was plain, but simply beautiful.