Vivienne Westwood Responsible for many of the edgy, punk, and new wave trends in fashion, Vivienne Westwood is one of the most recognizable and revolutionary fashion designers of recent history. Vivienne Isabel Swire, known popularly as Dame Vivienne Westwood, was born April 8, 1941 in Glossop, Derbyshire, England. Never one for formal, academic studies, Westwood attended Harrow School of Art but dropped out after one term. She did continue her studies at Trent Park College, and even served a lengthy stint as a primary school teacher in the north of London. Following a fairly ordinary life plan, she met and married Derek Westwood, and the two had a child together named Ben. They stayed married for three years before she met the edgy and completely unconventional Malcolm McLaren. Later gaining notoriety for managing the English rock sensation The Sex Pistols, the two made a daring duo. They married and had one son together, Joseph. Westwood would continue to teach until 1971, at which point McLaren opened the boutique, Let It Rock. Westwood’s designs were featured heavily from the onset, and they were exactly what the consuming public wanted. Mirroring the English music scene, everything was hard, edgy, and punk. It was common to see spikes as jewelry, bondage apparatus, safety pins, and even razor blades incorporated into the styles. Outrageous makeup and hair accompanied, of course.
Westwood retains the shop to this day, although it has been subsequently renamed World’s End. Her signature line, Anglomania, can still be found there. Her work has always played heavily on historical influences such as Peruvian culture, emphasizing the feminine form, and knitwear. Credited with irrevocably revolutionizing the fashion world, a retrospective of Westwood’s designs was assembled by Victoria and Albert Museum in 2004. Composed of 145 outfits, the exhibit is set for a world tour throughout 2008. Heavily rewarded for her place in British history, she was awarded a DBE (Dame Commander of the British Empire) in 2006. She has also won British Designer of the Year an impressive three separate times. A prominent figure, she counts many rock stars and fashion buffs as fans of her designs. These fans include Adam Ant, Gwen Stefani, Mick Jagger, Jerry Hall, Peter Burns, Marilyn Manson, and Naomi Campbell. She is also noted for designing the wedding dress for burlesque dancer and fashion icon, Dita Von Teese. Diversifying her work, she dabbled in film, including costume design on Robert Altman’s Prêt-à-Porter, Leaving Las Vegas for Elisabeth Shue, and Shadowboxer for Cuba Gooding Jr, Helen Mirren, and Vanessa Ferlito.
Following in her avant-garde steps, her son Ben Westwood is an erotic photographer, while her other son Joseph Corre is the founder of lingerie line Agent Provocateur. Always irreverent, Westwood caused a mild controversy when she accepted her OBE (Officer of the British Empire) in 1992. Without any panties, Westwood gave a dramatic twirl upon accepting the honor and revealed far too much of herself to the royal crowd. In her personal life, McLaren and Westwood divorced in 1980. She remarried in 1990 to Andreas Kronthaler, and they are currently still together. |
