Another season, another artist. Having looked at the work of Jim Hodges, Man Ray, and Joan Mitchell in the past year, that's become designer Lela Rose's inspiration mantra. "I've always collected art, so I like to pick a different artist for each collection," she said at the photo shoot for her first official pre-fall line. This season's choice? Abstract expressionist Clyfford Still. Still's colorful brushstrokes appeared on day-to-night cocktail dresses and on the bottom of the cropped pants that Rose paired with a woven wool and silk paneled jacket. Sequined embroidery dripped from the neckline of a T-shirt styled with a gray matelassé ball gown skirt for a similar effect. Rose imagined that look for the gala girl who wishes to opt out of wearing the obvious column gown or a heavy floor-length beaded frock. Other pieces were likewise driven by Still's graphic hand. Tops among them was a black crocheted-to-look-like-lace number.
