We already know, Vivienne Westwood has opted for punk that’s straight out of the working class London of the 70s and 80s. But if the flamboyant Westwood has made a pretty penny in the meanwhile, she’s still nonetheless as politically engaged as ever. During her Spring/Summer 2016 collection, for the Red Label line, this native Londoner highlighted a horde of youth brandishing banners with political messages that are loud and clear. The lights go off and so do the sirens… The projectors go on, fixed on a group. The signs: “Austerity is a crime.” “Fracking is a crime.” Nothing would suggest that her spirit of revolt has gotten swallowed up by the fashion status quo. Queen of Rebellion she still is as much as ever! There’s no questioning her authenticity.
The proof is a swaying spencer cooked up à la Westwood. This classic is thus reinvented upon contact with the nonchalance of a punk that wears whatever he manages to throw together – a bit too large, a tad unadapted, the Red Label spencer is nonetheless a perfect fit for the current generation. Neo-grunge is on the rise. The Westwood woman is able to strut proudly down the runway, at ease with her paradoxes, serious when she throws a large grey spencer over her shoulder. The woman imagined for next season has fun with it but, more importantly, she never forgets her environmental and politically engaged roots – despite her success!
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