I’m writing this on the day that the death of fashion designer Vivienne Westwood had been announced. Her death came at a time when in the last few weeks, we lost such cultural touchstones as Terry Hall, Pele and Martin Duffy, all of whom, like Vivienne, have played a part in many our own personal stories. She is someone who has been on my Speakeasy radar for a while, so now seems an appropriate time to take a look at her life and career.

She was born Vivienne Isabel Swire in April 1941 in Tintwistle, Glossop, Derbyshire. Her parents were Gordon, a greengrocer and Dora, a cotton weaver. By 1958, the family had moved to Harrow. Upon leaving school, Vivienne studied jewellery at the Harrow Art School, but only lasted a term.

‘I didn’t know how a working-class girl like me could possibly make a living in the art world.’

She eventually became a primary school teacher, whilst selling her own jewellery at Portobello Market. In 1962 she married Derek Westwood, in a wedding dress she made herself, after she had learned to make clothes as a teenager, by following patterns and by taking apart second hand clothes she found at markets in order to understand the cut and construction. Derek was  an apprentice at the nearby Hoover factory . In July of the next year, 1963, she gave birth to a son Benjamin.

Vivienne then met Malcolm McLaren, a friend of her brother Gordon, and her marriage to Derek was over not long after, Vivienne was 25. She and Malcolm had a son Joseph in 1967, and he would go onto to be the founder of the lingerie company Agent Provocateur, along with Serena Rees, in 1994.

Vivienne remained a teacher until 1971, by which time she and Malcolm had opened a small shop at number 430 Kings Road called ‘Let It Rock’ which sold rock ‘n’ roll and Teddy Boy clothing, some of which later appeared in the film ‘That’ll Be Day’ in 1973.

McLaren would become the manager of The Sex Pistols of course, with the band wearing clothes that were designed by Vivienne and sold though the same shop, which by 1974 was now called SEX, which had become a meeting place for the first wave of punks in London. In 1976, the shop changed names again and was now  called Seditionaries: Clothes for Heroes. Along with fetish wear, it sold bondage trousers which had a crotch zip seam, a ‘bum flap’ and ‘hobble’ straps attached to each leg . Tee shirt designs included swastikas, the Queen with a safety pin through her lips, naked breasts and cowboys in pornographic poses.

Vivienne –  “I was messianic about punk, seeing if one could put a spoke in the system in some way.’

Viv Albertine of The Slits, said at the time – ‘Vivienne and Malcolm use clothes to shock, irritate and provoke a reaction but also to inspire change. Mohair jumpers, knitted on big needles, so loosely that you can see all the way through them, T-shirts slashed and written on by hand, seams and labels on the outside, showing the construction of the piece; these attitudes are reflected in the music we make. It’s OK to not be perfect, to show the workings of your life and your mind in your songs and your clothes.’

By 1981 and with Punk now over, Vivienne, aged 40, and McLaren  began producing fashion collections . First up was ‘Pirate.’

Vivienne – ‘We’ve just spent 10 years re-assimilating the ’30s through the ’70s. The ’80s will be a technological age for which we need to equip ourselves with a feeling of human warmth from past ages of culture taken from the time of pirates and Louis XIV.’
 
Next was ‘Savages’ in late 1981, then ‘Buffalo/ Nostalgia of Mud’ in Spring 1982, ‘Punkature’ late 1982, ‘Witches’ in early 1983 and ‘Worlds End’ by 1984. The couple then ceased their partnership in 1985 . A year later Westwood partnered with Italian publicist Carlo D’Amario, who opened up the European expansion of her business. She also collaborated with ‘intellectual personal trainer’ Gary Ness.

Her influences came from all angles, ragamuffins, pagans, the ballet, Victorian crinoline, highwaymen, dandies and buccaneers. Her business grew and grew, and flagship stores bearing her name, opened in Paris and Manhattan as well as her having multiple outlets in China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan

In 1989 she posed for the cover of Tatler magazine dressed as Margaret Thatcher, over a caption that read: ‘This woman was once a punk.’ 

‘The suit I wore had been ordered by Margaret Thatcher from Aquascutum, but she had then cancelled it.’

Vivienne married her former fashion student, Andreas Kronthaler, in 1992 That same year, she was awarded an OBE, which she collected from Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace. At the ceremony, Westwood wore nothing but sheer tights under her skirt. This was later captured by a photographer in the courtyard of Buckingham Palace.

‘I wished to show off my outfit by twirling the skirt. It did not occur to me that, as the photographers were practically on their knees, the result would be more glamorous than I expected. I have heard that the picture amused the Queen. I didn’t do anything at the Queen, whom I admire.’ 

To prove that point in 2006,  Westwood advanced from OBE to Dame Commander of the British Empire ‘for services to fashion’ and she earned the award for British Designer of the Year on three occasions.

Vivienne stated in 2007 that she had transferred her long-standing support for the Labour Party to the Conservatives, over the issues of civil liberties and human rights. On Easter Sunday 2008, she attended at the biggest Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament demonstration in ten years, at Aldermaston, Berkshire.

In June 2013, Westwood announced she was shunning further expansion of her business as a way of tackling environmental and sustainability issues. A few years she aligned with the British civil liberty group Liberty.

‘When I was a schoolgirl, my history teacher, Mr. Scott, began to take classes in civic affairs. The first thing he explained to us was the fundamental rule of law embodied in habeas corpus. He spoke with pride of civilisation and democracy. The hatred of arbitrary arrest by the lettres de cachet of the French monarchy caused the storming of the Bastille. We can only take democracy for granted if we insist on our liberty.’

In early 2015, she came out as  a supporter of the Green Party. 

‘I am investing in the Green Party because I believe it is in the best interests of our country and our economy.’

It was reported that she had donated £300,000 to fund the party’s election campaign. Also, that year, she drove a tank to the then prime minister, David Cameron’s home in Oxfordshire, in a protest against fracking and as a vegetarian, Westwood lobbied the British government to ban the retail sale of fur alongside other top designers including Stella McCartney.

Among the individuals she has championed in recent years, are Chelsea Manning, the American activist and whistle blower, and Julian Assange the founder of Wikileaks. In June 2017, Westwood endorsed Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.

‘I’m excited about the Labour Party manifesto because it’s all about the fair distribution of wealth. Jeremy clearly wants to go green and creating a fair distribution of wealth is the place to start, from there we can build a green economy which will secure our future.’ She later called him ‘a beacon of hope in the struggle against emergent far-right nationalism, xenophobia and racism in much of the democratic world.’

She then created a manifesto called Active Resistance to Propaganda which stated…

‘(it) penetrates to the root of the human predicament and offers the underlying solution. We have the choice to become more cultivated and therefore more human – or by muddling along as usual we shall remain the destructive and self-destroying animal, the victim of our own cleverness. I don’t feel comfortable defending my clothes. But if you’ve got the money to afford them, then buy something from me. Just don’t buy too much.’

However, she continued to face criticism from eco-activists who claimed that despite her calls to save the environment, she herself made no concessions to making her clothing or her business eco-friendly.

Vivienne died aged 81, in Clapham, London, on 29 December 2022. 

Former co-leader of the Green Party MP Caroline Lucas – ‘Such a legend, a huge inspiration, brilliantly creative and always a committed activist for people and planet – my thoughts are with her family and friends – RIP.’

Husband  Andreas Kronthaler – ‘I will continue with Vivienne in my heart. We have been working until the end and she has given me plenty of things to get on with. Thank you darling.’

Last word to Dame Vivienne, who when asked if she was a happy person , replied

‘Yes. I think that I’ve been very lucky.’

 

The Mumper of SE5

Read The Mumper’s other weekly musings on the The Speakeasy Blog page

 

 

 

 

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