Helmut Lang, the minimalism and austerity of the 90s

Helmut Lang, stylist and sculptor with Austrian origin, dressed and marked the generation of the nineties with an austere style and a conceptual design, proposing severe silhouettes and essential lines, always accompanied by a pinch of innovation. With his slim dresses in neutral or total black colors, sophisticated jackets, straight trousers, inevitable jeans and the use of technical fabrics associated with precious textures, he is considered one of the fathers of fashion minimalism. His collections gave birth to a strong urban attitude that marked the meeting point between the catwalk and streetwear.

Born in Vienna in 1956, Helmut Lang opened his first bespoke atelier in his hometown in 1977, with no real tailoring training behind him. In 1986, in Paris, the homonymous brand made its debut in women's prêt-à-porter; the following year it was the turn of menswear, and then continued with the launch of footwear, jeanswear, accessories and ties. In Helmut Lang looks there is immediately the spirit of the avant-garde artistic and cultural movement to which he belongs, the Wiener Moderne, which still goes hand in hand with the concept of "less is more" that distinguishes the collections of brand and combines masculine and feminine elements.

The brand was acquired with a 51% stake by the Prada group in 1999, and was then sold in 2006 to Japan's Link Theory Holdings, controlled by Tadashi Yanai's Fast Retailing. In 2005 Helmut Lang announced his retirement from the fashion world and Michael and Nicole Colovos were appointed as new creative directors of the brand from 2006 until 2014, only to be replaced by Isabella Burley and Alix Browne.