Here is an interesting fact about the fashion world: Have you ever wondered why New York Fashion Week happens before the fashion shows in London, Milan, and Paris? Well, it all started with Helmut Lang.
Back in the late 1990s, New York Fashion Week used to be the last stop after the European runway shows. However, the Austrian designer known for his counter-cultural style, Helmut Lang, changed the game. He moved his fashion line from Paris to New York and decided to showcase his collection earlier than the traditional schedule, and this unconventional move led the entire fashion industry to do the same.
His impact reached far beyond his time and continues to influence the fashion world today. Prior to Helmut Lang, clothing like jeans and parkas were simply seen as everyday clothing. However, when he started selling meticulously designed, top-notch versions of these practical essentials at his store in SoHo, ordinary garments transformed into fashion statements.
In fact, some argue that the streetwear industry as we know it might not exist without Lang. For instance, James Jebbia, the founder of Supreme, credits him as a significant source of inspiration.
Peter Do planning to bring Helmut’s force back
Helmut Lang’s name used to carry a lot of importance. It played a big role in shaping an entire era of New York fashion characterized by a simple and understated style from the 1990s to the early 2000s.
Peter Do, who is now in charge of the brand’s creative direction, wants to revive that strong influence. He believes that the world needs Helmut’s style again.
Do was talking about the brand as well as the person behind it with Samuel Hine, from GQ.
Do shared that when the man himself left the fashion scene in 2005, the brand’s influence started to decline. Afterward, Uniqlo’s parent company, Fast Retailing, bought the brand in 2009, and there were several attempts to revitalize it creatively, but they did not quite make a strong case for Helmut Lang’s relevance in the rapidly changing fashion world.
Do has a clear and practical vision for how to make the name Helmut Lang important again. He thinks that fashion has become overly complicated recently, and he believes that there is something refreshing about the simplicity, honesty, and straightforwardness of the clothes that Helmut Lang used to create, which seems to have been missing in the industry.
Peter Do’s takeaway from Helmut Lang
The most important thing he notices is that many Helmut Lang fans had a strong bond with their clothing. This was because the designer paid a lot of attention to the quality of the fabric and added small details to the clothes, like a hidden pocket with a zipper on the trousers which only the wearer might notice.
He said that what he finds special about Helmut Lang is how people talk about the clothes they have, the clothes they wear, especially the parkas and jeans that they wear for a long time.
During his job interview earlier this year, when the brand reached out to him, Do wore a lucky charm that symbolized the enduring and almost emotional connection people used to have with the brand. It was a pair of “very dirty” white Helmut Lang jeans. Do explained that when bought those jeans they were already old, and he continued to wear them regularly for 15 years.
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Peter Do tries to reintroduce Helmut Lang to the young generation
Do is trying to capture the relaxed yet stylish vibe of Helmut Lang, but he is doing it in his own unique way. He explained that he wants to introduce the brand to a new generation of people who may not be familiar with Helmut Lang and also reignite the love for his style and how he designed it.
Do hopes that new customers will develop affection for these clothes, similar to how he fell in love with his white jeans. He explained that he disliked the idea of ‘elevated basics with a twist’ and he finds it amusing because Helmut Lang was probably one of the pioneers of that clothing category.
He continued that in this collection, he wants people to see a shirt and think it is just a regular shirt. However, when people try it on, they will notice it fits exceptionally well, the cut is perfect, and it has precisely the right button and stitching.
These are the small details that set a Helmut Lang shirt apart. Do mention that they went through 30 different Poplin shirts to find the perfect fabric.
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