A Look from Christopher John Rogers Recalls a Mesmerizing Morris Louis Painting

With his exuberant love of color, Christopher John Rogers designs womenswear awash in rich shades and hypnotic prints, such as this tiered taffeta gown with ruffle details from his fall 2026 ready-to-wear collection.

Influenced by the work of Helen Frankenthaler, Morris Louis made his “Veil” paintings by pouring diluted paint down raw canvases set at an angle to allow gravity to create mesmerizing rivers of pigment, as seen in the deep blues and maroons offset by a glowing streak of orange in Gamma (1960), which hit the auction block at Sotheby’s in May.

A version of this article first appeared in print in our 2026 Fall Issue in the section “Life Imitates Art.” Subscribe to the magazine.