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After falling short of expectations with his debut collection at Toronto Fashion Week last season, Adrian Wu took to the stage once again to prove his critics wrong. Or maybe to fight for his right.

A balloon-strewn ceiling, grass-green runway, and V for Vendetta masks were the chosen stylings for the collection, which featured 13 looks—all dresses covered in white polka dots and made of the same flannel fabric, ruched to comparatively less-extreme proportions as last season. The liner notes referenced a want to modernize 18^th century French womenswear, but we’re not sure the styling choices made sense. What we do know, however, is that they served a cleaner pallette to showcase his wears. While he may want to be recognized as more of a clothing designer and less of a spectacle, we’re not quite sure he did it this time. Honourable try, though.

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By Leah Semple

Presented to an at-capacity studio and accompanied by none other than a string quartet, the LG debut show of 21-year-old designer Adrian Wu started promisingly. By the first look out, however, the collection had already failed to impress. (That look being entitled “Natural Beauty,” or, in simpler terms, a hairy-legged man in a short lace shift dress and Lady Gaga–style facial orbit.) In looks titled “orgasm” and “blue balls,” tulle-wrapped IKEA paper lanterns overpowered the designs, protruding off of models in shapes suggestive of breasts and other bodily lumps ‘n’ bumps. While the gowns themselves were quite striking in a palette of muted colours and constructed to Wu’s signature voluminous style, they were not the focus of the audience, and apparently not that of Wu’s either. On more than a few pieces, faulty zippers and rogue hem threads stuck out like sore sartorial thumbs.

As natural as it may seem, it’s hard to find a designer these days whose aesthetic is rooted in the shape of a woman’s body. Adrian Wu is breaking boundaries by embracing it. Born in Burlington, Ont., the self-taught 20-year-old designer is already becoming known for the dichotomy of his subtle accenting versus his signature waistlines built up with voluminous piles (and piles) of upholstery. Opting mostly for draping and cutting into patterned raw silk, Wu’s pieces feel inventive, fresh and totally unique.

After teaching himself how to sew in 2009, and deferring acceptance to the Istituto Marangoni School of Fashion in London in 2010, Wu showed his Fall 2011 collection at the Vancouver and Ottawa Fashion Weeks. Recently he opened a boutique and studio to call his own, and we suggest picking up a Wu creation now. He’s likely to become the next great.

Adrian Wu is available by placing orders at adrianwu@adrianwu.com and at the Adrian Wu boutique (1455 Lakeshore Rd., Burlington, Ont., 905-334-1215).

See Adrian Wu’s Resort collection »