From left: Henri Matisse “Breakfast” 1920; Christian Lacriox Haute Couture Spring/Summer 2010.

As far as personal fashion inspirations go, there are few that stand the test of time. Mine might number: overalls, Archie comics, tutus and Henri Matisse, the latter of which resurfaced while viewing the Philadelphia Art Museum’s current exhibition Henri Matisse and Modern Art on the French Riviera.

As a child reluctantly and persistently dragged to art museums, Matisse’s Crayola-colored fruit offered me an engaging escape from omnipresent Egyptian artifacts. During university Art History, the images provided optimistic relief among Veronese’s chiaroscuro saints. However, it wasn’t until working in fashion in New York that I came to truly appreciate their stylistic insight.

Wandering the Met’s 2005 Matisse exhibition, the color use that I’d always admired now brought to mind endless shoot possibilities while simultaneously playing second fiddle to the paintings’ interplay of pattern. From the dresses to the wallpaper to the table linens, the artist provides a rare, direct link between fine art, textiles and fashion, blurring these creative worlds in a way that perfectly explains my love for Christian Lacroix. Four years later, the reason for the works’ enduring style appeal has become clear: each image is an unexpected, fantastical rendering of harmonic mishmash—in short, everything that fashion should be.

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Runway photo courtesy of Style.com.