My first introduction to the name Lucian Matis was back in my model agent days when he was casting models for his first collection at Toronto Fashion Week.
As I’ve watched his career grow and his creative vision evolve, all I can now see is an artist intent on expressing himself through fashion. His latest collection for Spring/Summer 2012 – which showed last week before Toronto’s official fashion week calendar – was inspired by another artist with a very similar last name, Henri Mattise.
"For this collection, I found inspiration in the famed Henri Matisse artwork of his beloved wife Emilie - "Green Stripe" (1905), which was part of the Fauvism movement and showcased colours as never seen before," said Matis in the media release.
Drawing his colour palette from the aforementioned painting, Matis paraded his models down the stark white runway set up at 99 Sudbury in Toronto. With legs that went on for miles in beige body suits with metallic decals, sheer flowing gowns with floral decals, and intricate basket-style weaved dresses, the beautiful textures and bold colours were breathtaking.
I likened the overall look more so as “warrior faeries” – strength through the feminine; a contrast of shown through the extremes in textures from the hard metal detailing to the softness of the fabric flower details.
Certainly not for regular wear, the collection of fantastical pieces would make any fashion magazine editor’s dream. While many designers would be envious to produce a collection made purely from an editorial stand-point, Matis’ main focus for his business comes from his more attainable lines Matis and his extremely successful Daphne line which sells on the Shopping Channel.
Matis also recently partnered with cosmetics brand Smashbox on a limited-edition cosmetics collection available at select Shoppers Drug Mart and he has plans for his own eyewear collection to be released in spring 2012.
View photos from the collection by clicking here.
---
Gail McInnes is one of Global Fashion's insiders during Toronto's LGFW. Read more about Gail here.
© Shaw Media Inc., 2012. All rights reserved.