Thomas Crawson, creative director of Helmut Lang, served his first solo collection at the NYFW. He and his team decided to push the envelope of fashion-forward as he skipped the runway and decided to get artistic this season. There were a series of inclusive photos of models and friends wearing Helmut Lang and walking around Christopher Street in New York City. The place is known for its LGBTQ presence. Helmut Lang’s Fall 2020 Collection was inspired by engaging pictures taken by Canadian artist, curator, and activist Sunil Gupta, titled “Christopher Street 1976.”

Inspired by Gupta’s work and his desire to create an open space for gay people back in 1976, Crawson invited the artist to create a 2020 version of his series. The series was inspired by the same time, giving the collection a sense of nostalgia and retro vibe. While it featured pieces for both men and women, the clothing was quintessentially chic. Slit skirts, sheer turtlenecks, shirts, and inconspicuous dresses were used to give the whole collection a gender fluidity. There was mostly work-wear given a modern touch while keeping the essence of a unisex collection. Softly draped silks and practically tailored coats rounded the whole collection. Thomas Crawson is hosting the exhibition in the downtown Manhattan store of Helmut Lang. The 2020 colorful series are put along with black and white frames of Christopher Street 1976. 

“When Sunil was photographing, I think the idea of queer liberation was quite solely amplifying a gay male identity, and I don’t think that reflects what 2020 looks like,” the designer says. “I wanted to make sure that if we were going to show 1976 versus 2020, that 2020 kind of looked like the broader expanse of what queer rights should be.”

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