To speak of punk, anarchy and revolution is to speak of Vivienne Isabel Swire (England, 1941), artistically known as Vivienne Westwood. The British designer considered the main promoter of the New Wave aesthetic and the one who dismantled all the aesthetic patterns known until then and made rebellion fashionable.
The designer was born in Derbyshire, a small town in England, into a humble family. She studied jewelery at Harrow School of Art and later trained as a teacher, which enabled her to work teaching at a North London primary school, as well as making jewelery which she sold at a stall on Portobello Road.
In 1962 he married Deren Westwood, the man from whom he took his stage name and with whom he had his first son, Ben. The marriage lasted until the creator met Malcolm McLaren, musician, businessman and later manager of the successful group Sex Pistols, with whom she Vivienne had her second son Joseph.
Hand in hand with McLaren, the British woman began in the world of punk, and in 1971 the couple opened Let it Rock, a store located at 430 King’s Road in the British capital that made the designer an icon of the movement . In 1974, the name of the store changed to SEX, in honor of the musical group that McLaren managed. The Sex Pistols’ use of Vivienne’s designed garments further popularized her proposal, which included elements of traditional British design combined with chains, spikes and the characteristic spiky hair; which meant quite a provocation at the time.
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In 1981 the store changed its name again and was renamed World’s End. That same year, the designer presented Pirata, her first collection featuring riding pants and asymmetrical cuts, with which she received very good reviews. The following year, with Nostaliga of Mud, Westwood once again revolutionized the sector by placing fasteners on damaged clothing and fabrics, and in 1983, with Socières, it showed the first sneakers to be paraded on the catwalk.
And it is that, long before the word punk was invented, Vivienne was already the queen of the movement, with her collections inspired by bikers and the use of materials such as rubber, patent leather, Scottish tartans, studs, buckles, safety pins, dog collars and a long etcetera that combined with extravagant makeup and hairstyles.
In 1983 Westwood ended its relationship with McLaren, which also broke any business collaboration. From that moment on, the British designer began to design alone, showing her collections – always related to politics, art and thought – at Paris Fashion Week, with resounding success every year and with her famous phrase “clothes look better on people who insist on using their intelligence” impregnated in each of their releases.
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Thus, if Westwood has been characterized by something in recent years, it is its commitment to sustainability and the environment. A theme that he refers to every time he has the opportunity in his parades with banners that allude to climate change or with activists such as the actress Rose McGowan or John Sauven, executive director of Greenpeace, on the catwalk.
For a few years, the British has tried its luck in other sectors. She has created Budoir, her own perfume, and joined the watchmaking firm Swacht to design one of her watches.
Among his milestones, he highlights the collaborations with Nine West, the design of the uniform for Kings College in London; the tribute to his career by the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra and the Victoria & Albert Museum; the title of Dame that she obtained in 2006 from the British Royal House for her historical contribution to fashion and, of course, (and for all lovers of Sex and the City), the Westwood signature wedding dress that Carrie Bradshow (Sarah Jessica Parker) wore in the film.
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