From Grace Jones to Connie Fleming, Mugler looked beyond the supermodel pantheon to make space for everyone in his barnstorming fashion spectacles
As the world continues to mourn the loss of yet another fashion titan, and tributes continue to flood our Instagram feeds, it’s impossible not to consider the extensive impact Manfred Thierry Mugler has had on the relationship between fashion and celebrity. Though he was instrumental in cementing the era of the supermodel by continually putting Linda Evangelista, Claudia Schiffer, and Eva Herzigova on the catwalk, he was also one of the first to look beyond the boundaries of fashion to find creative minds and personalities representative of his fantastical approach to design.
Always thinking outside the box when it came to elevating the experience of fashion shows into true spectacles, Mugler incorporated live music and theatre into the performances, and cast countless unexpected figures previously unseen in this context. Basically, this translated to a whole lot of cult celebrities on the catwalk. Summing up Mugler’s most memorable catwalk moments would be an impossible task. Each of his shows were deeply camp, setting the scene for 1,000 RuPaul’s Drag Race rip-offs (“Intergalactic Dominatrix” anyone?), packed full of strong-shouldered tailoring, hi-octane eveningwear, and couture-level stage looks.
Yet often, it felt like the choice of the wearer was just as poignant as the spectacular garments they paraded down the catwalk in. Picking the likes of pornstars, club kids, drag queens, and comedians as his ambassadors was an essential part of Monsieur Mugler’s irreverence, therefore setting the precedent for what a catwalk model looks like.
Claudia, Christy, and Linda aside. Below, we recount some of the most thrilling sightings from Thierry Mugler’s catwalks over the years.
SAYOKO YAMAGUCHI
As one of the first Asian models to grace the Parisian catwalks, the late Japanese model and actor was a signature catwalk fixture in Mugler’s shows throughout the 1980s. She walked as an ombré flower flowing through the spring air and a futuristic bride dripping in jewels and metallics. But her definitive Mugler moment came in the SS84 collection where Yamaguchi ethereally floated around while covered in tulle and carrying a live parrot in a cage.
VLADIMIR MCCRARY
With cameos in the Fifth Element and a Madonna music video alongside his numerous magazine and show credits, McCrary is one of those quintessential 1990s fashion figures. And while his recent comeback via a Marine Serre show and L'Uomo Vogue cover is very welcomed, it’s impossible not to drool over all of his Mugler catwalk moments – namely in AW95, wearing gold sequined tights and strands of pearls as a belt while flexing his muscles and carrying a heavy candelabra.
IRINA PANTAEVA
This Siberian supermodel with acting roles in Zoolander and Mortal Kombat was a true staple of Mugler’s nineties catwalks. With high sculptural hairdos, elaborate wiggle gowns and Kabuki-designed make-up looks the girls from Euphoria high would absolute gag for – she was the definition of theatricality Mugler was all about.
ADRIANA KAREMBEU
With 1.24 metre-long pins, Adriana Karembeu was once the holder of the Guinness World Record for a model with the longest legs. Yes, apparently that’s a thing. But the ultimate claim to fame for this Slovak model was in fact that she was *the* original wearer of the much-referenced dragon dress from Mugler epic SS98 Haute Couture collection. The garment has since developed into a symbol of Thierry Mugler’s wild creativity and became the focal point of the designer’s retrospective Couturissime, currently on display at Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris.
CONNIE FLEMING
Like Berghain’s Sven, Connie Girl is a club door guard with a legend that goes beyond the few people who got past her. Except she also happens to be an absolute queer icon of and a Mugler muse. She made her modelling debut in the early 1990s as shot by Steven Meisel and then proceeded to walk on major catwalks for several seasons, most notably as a glitzy red cowgirl in Mugler’s SS92 collection which also ended up becoming the base for George Michael’s ‘Too Funky’ music video.
NAOMI CAMPBELL AND VALERIE MORRIS (HER MUM)
Now, to see Naomi Campbell strutting down the catwalk is absolutely no shock within itself. But the world still echoes from this jaw-dropping mother-daughter moment at Mugler’s SS94 show when the supermodel extraordinaire was joined by her own mother, Valerie Morris. The two walked in contrasting, monochromatic mini rompers, proving just how strong the genetic gene is.
DIANA ROSS AND TRACEE ELLIS ROSS
According to an urban fashion legend, Diana Ross ‘The Boss’ gave Thierry Mugler an ultimatum – if she was to perform at his SS91 show, he also had to cast her daughter, one young Tracee Ellis Ross to walk in it. And oh, did he! The collection – titled Butterfly – was an ode to the disco queen, with nods to her career and past looks. Soundtracked with some of Ross’ tracks, the singer finished the show by shedding a sequined purple robe into a nude illusion with butterfly wings right on the catwalk. As for Tracee, she wore a classic Mugler suit, and even ended up being called again to walk for him again. Forget about Kris, this is the ultimate momager move.
LADY MISS KIER (& DJ DMITRY) of DEE-LITE
Thierry Mugler always brought the energy of the NYC club scene to his catwalks. While Dee-Lite mixed tracks for his shows, the band’s lead singer Lady Miss Kier was the designer’s muse, model, and personal friend. She walked on several of his catwalks, wore custom Mugler on tour, and truly represented the spirit of everything the legendary designer was about. Loud, wild, colourful, and unapologetic about it all, Lady Miss Kier even brought her band mate DJ Dmitry to the catwalk for SS92 as the duo performed a flirtatious sequence to their song “Pussycat Meow”.
Brigitte Nielsen for Playboy in Mugler. pic.twitter.com/CguYAubHdA
— Supa Spread Her (@FUCCl) February 11, 2019
BRIGITTE NIELSEN
One of the OG glamazons of fashion who transitioned into a Hollywood career, this Danish multi-hyphenate walked a Mugler catwalk while on – wait for it – crutches. For the designer’s AIDS benefit and retrospective show in LA in 1992, she wore a long black mullet gown with matching crutches which a couple of hunks took care of as she posed at the end of the catwalk. Joining Nielsen on that catwalk were the likes of Sharon Stone, barefoot and bare-assed comedian Sandra Bernhard, Daryl Hannah, Linda Hamilton, and many others.
TRACI LORDS
What about a cult pornstar on the catwalk? Traci Lords, who eventually moved into mainstream cinema, was an early Mugler model who embodied the designer’s ideal of female beauty. Her curves were always cinched and embraced, as she became the image of a modern Venus. At Mugler’s retrospective AIDS benefit show, she wore several looks, including a monogrammed moulded corset and a crystallised bra with a dollar sign covering her breast.
Jeff Stryker
— 💥 oʞ ɔıllɐʇǝɯ 💥 (@__metallicKO) January 24, 2022
Défilé Thierry Mugler
1992 pic.twitter.com/2Xqm96DQdk
JEFF STRYKER
Jeff Stryker is an award-winning icon of VHS porn who once had an adult action doll made after him – unlike Ken, the doll had a fully proportional erect phallus. In the fashion world, he’s probably more remembered for his performance at the Mugler SS92 show where he unzipped his cowhide chaps and skinny leather trousers to reveal a skimpy pair of shorts emblazoned in the back with the words ‘lucky me’. Woof.
Mugler 1992, feat. Ivana Trump pic.twitter.com/kGSS0fkWiP
— Elena (@ecdelj) January 24, 2022
IVANA TRUMP
Sharing the backstage with Stryker was none other than Ivana Trump herself. Sporting her signature teased do and a contrasting overdrawn lip liner, she wore two different looks – metallic executive realness for day and a bedazzled champagne gown with a 3D hem by night. A woman has never looked happier, and who could blame her – she was dripping in Mugler and had just finalised her divorce with Donald.
LYPSINKA
Though RuPaul and Pablo Vittar might be fighting for the title of the most famous drag queen in the world today, that title was once upon a time casually claimed by John Epperson, aka Lipsynka. In more ways than one, Epperson originated the modern-day lip sync performances we see at live and TV drag shows, with dynamic mixes of spoken word and songs from film and music. Lipsynka performed for Mugler on several occasions, most notably at the AIDS benefit show where they revealed multiple looks while lip-syncing to Peggy Lee’s “There'll Be Some Changes Made”.
DIANNE BRILL
With Mugler’s AW95 haute couture show held at the Cirque d'Hiver, the level of performance was turned up to the max. This anniversary extravaganza, arguably his biggest one ever, included a multi-levelled stage, tons of confetti, and a live performance by James Brown. A look synonymous with this collection, as worn by club legend and the muse Dianne Brill, appeared to have a woman emerging out of a satin shell covered in pearls. Over two decades later, Cardi B reinstated its iconic status by wearing the look to the 2019 Grammys. Another one of Brill’s memorable Mugler moments was an all-purple take on the seminal ‘My Fair Lady’ look from SS92.
CARMEN DELL'OREFICE
This silver-haired beauty with cheekbones high to the sky continues to break boundaries as she remains an active model in her 90s. She has shot with every legendary photographer and walked for most of the world’s biggest fashion designers – including Manfred Thierry Mugler. For his AW97 Haute Couture show, Dell’Orefice wore a gold fishscale sequin twinset with a masquerade mask like a vision of a Mugler supervillainess.
VERUSCHKA VON LEHNDEROFF
Mugler’s collections often paid homage to legendary female figures whose legacy inspired his work. Pioneering model Veruschka was one of them, as she took part in the grand AW95 couture show where she wore a classic Mugler tux and her hair curled in a retro 1950s style.
TIPPI HEDREN
Another legendary name at this epic show was *the* Hitchcock Blonde Tippi Hedren, whose outfit paid homage to her career-changing role in the cult 1963 horror film. “Walking out in that satin dress with these satin birds on it with all those other models — that was exciting and wonderful,” she told T Magazine of this moment.
VIOLETA SANCHEZ
No one looks as good in Mr Pearl’s corsets for Mugler as Violeta Sanchez, the model, muse, and actress with a mysterious look that went against traditional female norms of the times. She bared her ass for AW95, sauntered a vampire-esque red gown in AW88 – and always infused a sense of theatre into the performance.
DEBI MAZAR
A thick Queens accent, signature red lip, and piercing eyes – Debi Mazar is one of those actors you’ve definitely seen in a film or TV show, without necessarily knowing much more about her life than that she’s Madonna’s BFF and music video girl (she steals the show in “True Blue”), Debi also walked for Mugler a couple of times – in SS91 she skipped down the catwalk alongside a brooding, young Tony Ward. Who knows, maybe this moment will even make it into the upcoming Madonna biopic, in which Julia Fox is tipped to play Debi.
Grace Jones in Thierry Mugler. Icon draped by an icon. pic.twitter.com/D5lZuLzKRz
— Lisa_B_Trinidad (@AuthorTrinidad) January 24, 2022
GRACE JONES
Though she was beginning to transition from modelling into a musical career, Grace Jones continued to offer her statuesque figure to Mugler’s shows. She always fit his garments perfectly – whether it was a moulded superhero corset or a custom woven leather look created for one of her performances. She even made a casual Mugler tropical camouflage jumpsuit look like a couture-level gown. Such is the power of Grace.
STELLA ELLIS
Way before the idea of models beyond a size two became part of mainstream conversations in fashion, Manfred Thierry Mugler enlisted pioneering ‘plus-size’ model Stella Ellis as one of his muses. Ellis, who also walked for Jean Paul Gaultier, appeared in the “Too Funky” video as well as on the catwalk of his 20th anniversary show, dripping in jewels while wearing a revealing neon floral gown with a large stole over it.