Vibeke Hansen with architecture in “Le Smoking” for Vogue, April 1967. Photograph by Helmut Newton.
Set on Rue Aubriot, Paris. Hansen wears Le Smoking, a women’s tuxedo by Yves Saint Lauren. The idea behind the image is simple: a masculine woman, androgynous, in a Parisian street by night. “Le Smoking” gives her power; her body language accentuates an impression of inaccessibility. A confident posture, the way she holds her cigarette, is front and center. Everything comes together to give her a man’s expression, and yet, it’s femininity that translates to the glossy paper.