Designer Derek Lam’s collections are often called ‘intellectual’ because of their art and architectural influences.Ralph Mecke
Countless American designers claim they're redefining the classics, but few do it with the focus and finesse of Derek Lam. The 49-year-old Chinese-American, who hails from San Francisco, was born into the business – his parents imported clothing from Asia and his grandparents helmed a bridal-wear factory. After completing his studies at Parsons in New York, he landed an internship with Michael Kors. After a stint in Hong Kong, he found his way back to the Big Apple – and Kors – landing a plum job as VP of design for the label. In 2003, Lam launched his own line, and within a couple of years, won the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Competition.
Lam, along with his business partner and husband, Jan Hendrik-Schlottman, continues to grow the brand and has taken on additional design duties at Athleta, the fitness-wear label owned by GAP Inc. Lam's look has been called "intellectual", with his passion for modern art and architecture reflected in the elegant, luxurious and wearable pieces he creates. The designer paid a visit to Toronto's Holt Renfrew recently, where we talked about honesty, authenticity, and raising the bar for casual fashion.
You have become a designer that people look to for direction. Is that something that you're conscious of?
There are so many different layers of who you're trying to reach when you're doing a show and a collection: the client, the consumer, the general audience of fashion – which is now huge – and then also your peers, the people who are going to give you an honest opinion of how your work stands in that moment. And all of that plays into how a collection is presented on the runway, especially for me. I love that layering of meaning. I like that thoughtfulness and that I'm speaking at different levels. I'm thinking about the consumer. What's going to excite her? What's going to get her to buy something new? She has everything. So what's the new silhouette? I never do anything that's avant-garde. But sometimes I think, "Why not do a whole collection for spring in suede," because I love the material and it has a certain nostalgia for me. But I also think about making sure the level of craftsmanship is worthy of the audience.
It's interesting how the creative process works. How much of it comes from intellect versus a sense of aesthetics? You're basically telling stories, aren't you?
I studied English writing when I was in university and I loved the idea of being a writer and revealing stories. I don't always do it well. I sometimes think that my work is a little bit more obscure, and a little bit quieter. The meaning is not so easily understood compared to someone who's brilliant at marketing and brilliant at putting a message on the runway. It's a work in progress and I love that it's not always one thing.
Is it becoming increasingly difficult to remain true to yourself at a time when there is so much noise in the fashion landscape?
It's funny because when I first thought about starting my brand, I didn't want to name it after myself. I wanted to name it something more anonymous. I was not about "Okay lets be a personality and let's build a personality brand." One of the words that I wanted to use was the word "honour" or "honest". I mention it now because at the end of the day, I want my work to have that honesty, that honest conversation with women about design and how things are put together and how things are accepted and reflected. It was impossible to secure the name "Honour" or "Honest", so everybody was like "Forget it…just name it after yourself." So I caved in, but I still go back and I say that no matter what, I just need to be honest. When I'm not honest, invariably it's not a great season.
There's this whole new wave of people becoming more comfortable in their own skin and wanting that to carry over to the way they dress. Do you think that's good or bad for fashion?
When I see people wearing their yoga clothes 24/7, it's a little bit jarring. I feel like we're just scraping the bottom here, people! So when I decided to do this collaboration with Athleta, that was one of the mantras. I understand the functionality of the clothes, but let's elevate it. Let's really make it so that when I see somebody walking down the street at 6:30 pm in New York City wearing it, I'm not taken aback. My partner, Jan, is European and I always turn to him and say, "Don't you think in Paris, all the tourists from Europe would be aghast? I'm aghast!". And he says, "Well, you know what? It's modern life, it's the modern age!" And I say, "No! We have to do better!" So yeah, it's here and it's obviously answering something that people desire. But that doesn't always mean just giving them what they want.
This interview has been condensed and edited.