Helmut Lang SS03 Silk-Chiffon Bondage Top Dress

Helmut Lang made the strap a signature across his final years at the label, and this piece from Spring Summer 2003 carries it in its lightest form. Loose ties fall from the shoulders and hem of a dark jersey body, with a panel of pale silk chiffon laid over it so the two layers move independently. The bondage motif that ran through Lang's work in this period drew on punk tailoring and on military webbing. Here the straps are unstructured cord rather than buckled hardware, and the chiffon overlay is left unlined.