Cutting Out the Tale

You know the bits in shows like X Factor/American Idol etc that really make me cringe and wince‚Ķ?  Not when hopefuls sing in weird falsettos or have an inflated sense of their own talent.  But when very selective editing highlights a contestant's 'sob story'.  Cue, a bit of Adele's Hometown Glory piano section, a bit of slow-mo camera action and some tears, where sympathy is gormlessly drawn out of audiences for no good reason other than to create blatant bias. 

I therefore post about Laquan Smith with some trepidation.  This is a name with both a sob story and a heap of celeb/industry hype gunning behind him.  There have been some unexpected names emerging from this season's fashion weeks with some tales and big names attached to them – Hakaan from London with Edward Enninful as his stylist and Kate Moss at his show, Brazilian child prodigy Pedro Lourenco in Paris with Brana Wolf doing the styling and in New York, comes Laquan Smith, with a whole lotta buzz building.  Most people will have heard about Andr√© Leon Talley's championing of Smith and his recommendation that Michelle Obama should wear Smith: "I'm here to embrace an African-American designer for his debut, because we need that diversity in the fashion world".  Rihanna and Lady Gaga have also worn Smith's work. 

Smith's backstory is similarly compelling and also clearly resonates with ideas of the American dream and going from 'rags to riches'. When I call it a 'sob story', this isn't to take anything away from the tale, only that I'm probably a wee bit cynical about perceptions shifting because of the tale.  He's only 21 years old but has battled with cancer as well as being rejected from schools like FIT and Parsons to go it alone on a self-taught path.  He designs and sews all his work in his bedroom in his grandparent's house in Queens. 

Yet, I eyewince.  There is of course no TV producer sitting there thinking "Hmm…now let's see how we can manipulate our audience into liking this 16 year old kid from a village in Wales?".  That said, I'd hate for any back story or connections or buzz to get in the way of Smith's talent.  The truth of the matter is, none of the above really matters when you are genuinely faced with talent.  Even the fact that Talley asserts that he is self-taught and that he's African-American seems to me to be like someone finger-ticking pep-talk excuses to like him.  Surely the only reason to like Laquan Smith is his work.  I have to say from his previous collections his New York Fashion Week debut has really stepped it up a gear and with these beautifully sculpted underwater-inspired designs, notes of McQueen and Balenciaga vaguely resonate in a collection that looks to be supremely sleek, finished superbly as well as showing a clear amount of ambition.  I'm interested in seeing where these ideas go and how they will progress without being overly referential because I personally think NYFW could do with even more unique voices in addition to the city's 'new gen' that is currently being galvanised by the likes of the Mac x Milk initiative.  This is an exciting and invigorating start and when I say he's one to watch, it's more than just some light Google work and it does mean I will be hammering at his PR's door asking when new collection images are being shot and what the hell he is up to next.  Apologies in advance for that.     

That said, the day that the story starts getting over-peddled and I see Laquan Smith on some chat show making middle-aged women weepy in the eye is when I put my face into a pillow (I'm referring to those TV moments again… ).

(Photographer: Itaysha Jordan, Talent: Sessilee Lopez, Hair: Dante Blandshaw @WT Management, Manicurist: Crystal Clarke, Makeup Artist: Paul Innis @WT Management)

P.S. On a totally unrelated, non-serious note… doesn't Sessilee look incredibly sublime in Laquan Smith?