Exactly What Rick Owens Looks For In a Model

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Back in January, during the men’s shows in Paris, Dazed magazine asked designer Rick Owens what he looks for in his models.

“It’s hard to describe because it’s not that I just choose weirdos,” he said, looking contemplatively into the distance. “I usually tell the casting agent, who asks me every season, and I pretty much say the same thing: I want an Egon Schiele crack whore. Those are my instructions.”

So there you have it. Crack whores.

Owens is about to show his fall 2026 women’s wear collection in Paris. A color pallet of gray, black, and brown with an abundance of leather and sheer jersey, shoes that look like cloven hooves, a dozen fog machines, and plenty of “Mad Max meets House Harkonnen” vibes seems all but guaranteed at this point. As do the flood of rapturous reviews that accompany just about everything Owens does.

And don’t get us wrong. He makes some beautiful and very interesting clothes. With a very specific and unrivaled point of view. And however one might feel personally about his outré output (and casting) you gotta give it to the man: he knows his audience and manages to send them into paroxysms of joy season after season.

And if you’re hoping to become one of his catwalk darlings, well, now you have a new reference point from which to start refining your lewk for next season. So get crackin’!