It’s not every day that Southfield rolls out the red carpet for one of its own, but on the evening of Friday, May 16, the city will do just that, welcoming home actress, activist and fashion icon Selma Blair.

She will serve as the celebrity host of the Art & Vintage Fashion Show, a dazzling fundraiser benefiting Friends of the Southfield Public Arts. The event will unfold high above the city skyline on the 28th floor of the former Skyline Club at 2000 Town Center, offering stunning views to complement an evening of creativity and community.

Blair, whose acclaimed film and television career includes standout roles in “Legally Blonde,” “Cruel Intentions” and the “Hellboy” series, has become as well-known for her fearless advocacy and personal style as she has for her on-screen talent. But despite her international acclaim, her roots remain grounded in her hometown.

“When I was a little girl in Southfield, I didn’t know about community programs — I often wished for them,” Blair said in a written statement. “My parents worked hard, and though I didn’t have access to those things, Southfield gave me something else: imagination. I remember hearing softball games behind my house on Coventry Woods Lane, dreaming I had a team and a uniform. But it was in the nearby woods, with my mom and sister, that I found my Brigadoon — a hidden world where I sketched, dressed in old gowns, and let my dreams come alive on film.”

For Blair, returning to Southfield as the event’s special guest is more than just a homecoming. It’s a celebration of the imagination and artistry that first took root in those woods and neighborhoods.

The May 16 show promises to be a feast for the senses. Six local artists — Micherlange Francois-Hemsley, Lionnell Hurst, Jonathan Kimble, Carole Morisseau, Rosemary Summers, and Oshun Williams — will display their artwork, offering guests the opportunity to purchase pieces that span media and message. Adding to the curated visual experience, a pop-up boutique will feature vintage jewelry and art for sale.

But the heart of the evening is its fashion show, where 12 students from the Southfield A & T Dance Team will model over 40 pieces of vintage couture spanning the 1940s through the 1970s. Each garment carries with it a thread of metropolitan Detroit’s fashion history.

“All of the couture that will be featured in the show is on loan from vintage clothing store Fantoni located in Berkeley,” Southfield Public Arts Commission Chair Delores Flagg said. “The outfits included were all previously sold in former high-end Detroit stores, such as Hudson’s, B. Siegel, Winkelman’s, Himelhoch’s, Jacobson’s, Bonwit Teller, Claire Pearone and Surwin’s — showcasing the best of the metro Detroit area’s rich fashion and design history.”

The youth-led fashion show exemplifies a key mission of Friends of the Southfield Public Arts: fostering engagement and artistic exploration among the city’s next generation. The event offers students a platform to express themselves through fashion and performance.

“We are thrilled to partner with our local students to showcase their talent, poise, grace and personal style,” Flagg said. “As a renowned fashion figure, Ms. Blair was honored in 2023 by Glamour magazine with the prestigious Women of the Year Award, and in 2024 by British Vogue as one of its 40 ‘Megastars.’ She serves as a great role model for other young Southfield women who can take inspiration from her many accomplishments and in their own dreams that they too can strive to make reality.”

Mayor Kenson Siver, an avid supporter of the arts, noted that the event builds on the success of a similar show held last year.

“The Friends of Southfield Public Arts is the fundraising arm of the Southfield Public Arts Commission that was established in 2015 to advise the City Council on matters affecting public art in the city,” Siver said. “The goal of this commission is to create a stimulating environment that reflects and enhances the city’s heritage, diversity and character through public artworks integrated in the architecture, infrastructure and landscape. The commission held a very successful inaugural Art & Vintage Fashion Show last year, and we hope to capitalize on that success with this expanded version 2.0.”

Blair’s presence, according to Siver, came about through a heartfelt gesture from the actress herself.

“Ms. Blair’s outstanding team reached out to the city to relay her very generous offer to give back to the community where she was raised,” Siver said. “As one of our most successful and distinguished former residents, we were thrilled to partner with her to create something special.”

Proceeds from the event will support new public art projects across Southfield. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, Friends of Southfield Public Arts ensures that every dollar raised furthers initiatives that beautify and enrich the community through murals, installations and other creative programming, organizers said.

For Blair, it’s a full-circle moment.

“It moves me deeply to see Southfield growing into a home for creative dreamers and performers,” she said. “So many incredible people have come from here. There really must be something in the water, or the woods, or the skyline that inspires greatness.”