who was vivienne westwood?

Answer 1

Website: www.viviennewestwood.com

The most eccentric and influential of Britain's fashion designers who puts out on the runway the most amazing and spectacular clothes. Her Logo is a royal ORB with a cross on top, bejewelled and impressive as befits the Queen of British fashion.

In 1941, Vivienne Swire was born in Derbyshire, England. Her father was a shoemaker and her mother a cotton weaver. When she was 16, her family moved to London and Vivienne attended the Harrow School of Art. After spending just one term there, she left to become a primary school teacher. She met her first husband Derek Westwood in 1962 and married him. They had a son Ben. In 1965, she met Malcolm McLaren who became her partner in fashion as well as life. He was a very flamboyant man.

In 1971. together with McLaren, she started up a shop called "Let it Rock" on London's trendy Kings Road. She spent all night stitching rock-inspired clothes, visiting punk clubs and grunge bars. In 1974 the couple opened another boutique called "Sex" selling pornographically printed T-shirts and garments with sexual slogans printed on them.

In 1977 they changed the name of their boutique to "Seditionaries" and sold garments with a bondage look made of leather.

In 1980 there was another change of name to "World's End" and Vivienne introduced her Pirate collection, including frilly shirts and romantic swashbuckling styles. It was very successful.

1982 She introduced the first collection in her own name which proved very popular. Her collections were called Buffalo, Savage, and Punkature.

1983 She gave a fashion show in Paris, the first British designer to do so since Mary Quant in the 60's. People remember it as one of the best shows ever, but chic Parisiennes were horrified by the riotous behaviour and punky London garments. The collection was called "Punkature".

Her relationship with McLaren ended and her shops closed but her talent could not be kept down. She opened a studio in London's Camden area, a 19 km bicycle ride from her modest apartment in South London.

1984 Her collection was called Hypnos, the first sports collection with fluorescent fabrics on the catwalk.

1985 Vivienne Westwood based her collection on Clint Eastwood, the film star.

1985 She launched her "mini-crini" a very short crinoline design, which took off like a rocket.

1987 The Harris tweed collection, thoroughly British tweed, twinsets and pearls (for the men too)

1988 The Pagan collection, full frocks and Greek drapery.

1989 Voyage to Cythera, with fig-leaf tights.

1990 Her "Portraits" collection, used paintings of the old masters such as Boucher. You can see these by clicking on Art and Fashion

1990 Vivienne Westwoo won her first British Designer of the Year award.

1991 Cut and Slash, a collection featuring wittily torn cotton and slashed denim clothes.

1991 Won her second Designer of the year Award.

1992 She presented a collection based on Hollywood glamour called "You are always on Camera"

Another collection the same year, parodied French couture.

1992 She was awarded an O.B.E. and went to receive it from the Queen in a see-through blouse, and a skirt which when swirled around displayed her lack of underwear. She shocked the world.

1993 She called her collection "Anglomania" and used tartan suits, ball gowns, fake fur corsets, etc.

1994 Ravishing romanticism with "on liberty"

1995 Erotic zones collection Assorted pads, hoops and stays pumped up the models contours and allowed them to alter their outlines at whim. Their erotically upholstered frames and playfully leering attitude is vintage Westwood.

1996 Her collection was inspired by Watteau, the painter of exquisite 18th century women.

The Cosmopolitan Fashion awards rank her 4th in the British ready-to-wear designers rank.

1998 She has gone back to her Pirate beginnings, her new collection is called "tied to the mast" and features seamen.

2000 Vivienne Westwood has become the "old lady of fashion" not yet completely respectable, but yet respected.

Vivienne's Spring 2002 collection "Fairy Tales" showed pale woodland nymphs in natural muted tones, flowers and brambles with skirts bunched, ruched and drapes. Heavy cottons and suede skirts were worn with cherry leather aprons and sexy nymphs wore handcrafted crochet dresses in black and white, floating at the knee.

Answer 2

Umm the post above is too long. So I'll shorten it up.
Vivianne Westwood is a punk rock designer. And she recently did a collabo with nine west to make supposedly "more affordable" accesories which almost all cost more than $100.