Matis by Lucian Matis // Fall 2012

Lucian Matis presented his second Collection for the Fall/Winter 2012 season last night at Toronto Fashion Week! I was so blown away by how brilliant and almost couture his initial showcase was that opened Fashion Week, at the Fairmont Royal York, that I couldn't keep myself away from what he must have come up with for his Prét-à-Porter. View my review of his beginning collection, Nature's Art in Symmetry, here.

Matis by Lucian Matis opened with the complete opposite of Nature's Art in Symmetry; colour! Colour, colour, colour for the Fall/Winter season. Interesting and unexpected? Definitely. And this isn't necessarily because Matis is just using colour in his collection, what makes it more interesting is the way he has used it. It wasn't blocked in lines of demarcation like we have been seeing from so many other designers lately. Instead, he relied on pattern, fabric, and illusion to emphasize his classic and beautiful silhouettes.

Flowing fabric and beautifully draped pieces dominated his runway collection. Sexy and sensual deep necklines, cocktail-length and flirty; dotted with the odd sequence here and there, the luxurious feather, and cascades of graphic and luminous print. I really believe that's what this collection is supposed to be about. Because the shapes and the ideas of the pieces were all classic silhouettes; easy dresses that can go from day to night, effortless, and almost transcendent of seasonal change. What set the collection apart were the graphic prints; intersecting lines, interesting colours, and bold patterns. Perhaps taking the dreary palette out of Autumn? Creating a new base of new neutrals in patterns and print? To be honest, I think the direction is clever. It's marketable but it's different, and I would have loved to see these imaginative prints perhaps manifest in some great fall scarves that he could have partnered with his beautiful dresses. Overall, Matis by Lucian Matis was undoubtedly Matis. Crisp, feminine, detailed, beautiful.

More photos below

Full credit of the fantastic photography goes to Steve Alkok. View his entire album of Matis here.

▲D