Editor’s Note: The much-maligned helmet is the subject of a Lange New exhibition At Mack in Vienna. As part of Vogue Runway’s ongoing efforts to document the history of fashion shows, we’re closing out 2025 by adding fully digitized shows to the site. This spring 1992 ready-to-wear collection was presented in Paris in October 1992.
When Helmut Lang presented in Paris this spring, he was still years away from moving to New York, yet hints of the wild west were still present in the use of body paint, bolos, chaps, earth heads and beaded snakes that made their way around the briefs. Avoids the markers of hot weather—sandals, swimsuits, and polo dresses—against a studier, more protective material like leather and armor in the form of breast plates.
If the clothes had been a feature at the opening, there would have been a greater sense for the latter’s exit, although that was not the term at the time. The designer said like liquid, a red jersey moved. And the look 51’s Glacial Shine Spider Web was crafted with an excess of fine metalwork. The metallic sheen in the basketry look felt a bit futuristic. One thing about Lang’s Cowboys and Cowgirls is that he wasn’t afraid to show some muscle or some skin.
