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Run, Run, Run, Runway
Toronto native Lucian Matis, 28, landed in second place behind Evan Biddell, a 24-year-old designer from Saskatoon, on the finale of Project Runway Canada last night. Matis, Biddell, and third-placer Marie Genevieve Cyr showed ten-piece collections at Toronto’s L’Oréal Fashion Week in October as the final challenge of the reality show. The runway shows were performed in front of an audience and evaluated by the Runway judges: supermodel Iman, Elle Canada Editor Rita Silvan, and Bustle Clothing’s Shawn Hewson.
Matis showed a floral-inspired Victorian collection, while Biddell displayed a colourful collection inspired by Saturday morning cartoons from the nineties. Yup, that pretty much sums up the personalities of the two designers. While the two boys stayed true to their own styles, Montrealer Cyr switched gears from her usual playful, whimsical nature to show a collection inspired by architecture. Although the judges were impressed by Cyr’s line, they felt the collection was inconsistent and not cohesive, and she was eliminated. During the final judging between Matis and Biddell, Silvan was touched by Matis’s work and called it a “celebration of hope and beauty.” However, Iman and Hewson liked Biddell’s vision more and outvoted Silvan to crown Biddell the winner.
After the show finished filming, Matis flew to Shanghai, where he is now working on a new collection. Matis has previously shown at Fashion Week in March 2007 and was also featured on the second season of Canada’s Next Top Model. You can check out more of his designs on his website or on his pout-riffic MySpace page.
Photo of Matis from MySpace.