The Westwood Effect: Vivienne Westwood's Everlasting Legacy

By: Nandini Narkar

Vivienne Westwood is a highly coveted British fashion designer. Ever since her cult-classic debut in 1981, Vivienne Westwood has established herself as an artistic force and fashion icon. With her non-conforming attitude, creativity and undeniable talent: her impact on fashion is one for the books.

Westwood was bound to life as a kindergarten teacher before she established the epicentre of punk on Kings Road with the future Sex Pistols manager and husband Malcolm Mclaren. While the punk movement isn’t something Westwood could take sole credit for, her influence on the subculture is unrivalled. Not many designers can say that they blurred the lines between music and fashion.

Vivienne Westwood on Punk:

The iconic Kings Road shop opened due to the duo’s lack of inspiration from the hippie movement. Punk had many pieces inspired by fetish and bondage subcultures. Hence, the store reformed itself to Sex “rubber wear for the office” from the previous names but finally settled on Worlds End. The store garnered an eccentric and diverse clientele from prostitutes to the Chelsea elite, everyone wanted a piece of punk. Punk was a prominent subculture for the dismissed and misunderstood. They wore tight and slashed denim and leather, safety pins, studded dog collars, black lipstick, heavy eyeliner and lots and lots of hair gel. They aspired to make a statement. Punk was a statement.

The duo was on the frontiers of the punk movement during the 1970s in London. However, it wasn’t until Mclaren started managing the Sex Pistols that punk both as a style and cultural phenomenon commenced. With Johnny Rotten (Johnny Lydon) as the face of the band and “Anarchy in the UK” and “God Save the Queen” in their pocket, in 1976 the Sex Pistols became the embodiment of the United Kingdom’s social and political unrest. By the end of the 1970s, Westwood and Mclaren were known globally for their contribution to the punk scene.

The Signature Style of Westwood:

Soon Westwood moved away from the shop and launched her first catwalk collection in partnership with Mclaren. The Pirate collection of 1981- “offered a romantic look which burst onto the London fashion scene”- cemented its place in fashion history. Dame Westwood gave the mainstream fashion world its first taste of bondage trousers, safety pins, chains and other aspects of BDSM.

Her designs strive to transcend class, gender and sexual orientation to create a gender-fluid world. It encourages wearers to adopt confidence through “eighteenth-century aristocratic dress or traditionally tailored suits adorned with fetish bondage buckles”. As a fashion history buff, I revel in the line she draws between the fashion of the Georgian era and punk. The blend of corsets with plaid and politics serves as the perfect ode to Westwoods roots and her artistic journey. From her start on King’s Road, Westwood’s inspirations evolved and birthed a “ rebel aesthetic that is truly her own”.

Westwood and Politics:

From advocating for the environment to having activists grace her catwalk, Westwood does politics in fashion like no one else. Throughout her time she has donated to the UK’s Green Party, launched Climate Revolution, protested anti-terror laws with t-shirts and even publicly mocked former UK prime minister Margaret Thatcher. “Propaganda” F/W 2005 and “Unisex: time to act” F/W 2015, are perfect examples of Westwood’s advocacy on the runway. “Café Society” S/S 1994, running on pure erotic charge and Westwood showing up commando-style to accept her OBE, upsetting the press, are cases of Westwood’s unapologetically original persona. She is not scared to call for controversy or criticism. Westwood walks to the beat of her own drum, scarce of the fear to comment on social and political issues. Vivienne predominantly advocates climate change, civil rights and freedom of speech. Through her diverse audience, she tackles globally prominent issues in the superficial world of fashion.

During my research, I found Vivienne’s dedication to activism very compelling. Considering her punk roots, giving a voice to globally prominent problems was on brand. For a long time, I was solely exposed to the superficial face of fashion, believing that clothes and models provided nothing more than a gateway into the reckless elite and unrealistic standards. Seeing Westwood use her art as a medium to send political messages and critiques on society, helped me broaden my view on the industry as a whole. I stopped believing that fashion did not have an impact on society or individuals, I simply had to change my lens.

Westwood on Other Designers:

Westwood’s eccentric aesthetic and rebel mindset struck a chord not only with the general public but with designers as well. The “Buffalo collection” of 1982-1983 and the “Witches collection” of 1983-1984 which used multiple layers to create a relation between fabric and body; inspired many. The punk elements of the collection were revisited by the celebrated Jean Paul Gaultier and Karl Lagerfield. Her asymmetrical, neon sportswear was spotted on many runways as well as high street stores such as TopShop and H&M.

Westwood also stemmed as inspiration for the Japanese designers Yohji Yamamoto and Rei Kawakubo who visited her store SEX preceding their controversial Paris debut. Some say their collections were partially inspired by her ripped knitwear and anti-establishment spirit. Rei Kawakubo's iconic “Lumps and Bumps” S/S 1997 was an inspirational extension of Westwood’s Fall/Winter 1994 range, which explored exaggerated physique. Her widespread influence was reinforced when even Dolce and Gabbana admitted to “transparent imitation”.

Westwood and the new generation:

With GenZ adopting an obsession with previous generations zeitgeist and a collective anti-establishment ethos, Westwood’s 18th century inspired collections served as the perfect accessory. TikTok fashion trends reintroduced the brand to the younger generation allowing the brand to pick up a whole new demographic. Musicians like Dua Lipa and Madison Beer have been spotted sporting the Armoured ring and Saturn pearl necklace, which soon became the new it-girl pieces. With the corset coming back into trend, FIT New York stated that Vivienne Westwood and Jean Paul Gaultier were responsible for this resurgence.

Since the popularity of TikTok last year, the app was a platform for many emerging aesthetics. One of them is the E-girl/ E-boy subculture. It adopted many aspects of BDSM accessories, that were made mainstream through the punk movement. Once again, proving that there is no one like Vivienne Westwood.