Vivienne Westwood Pirate Boot
View Similar Items
Vivienne Westwood Pirate Boot
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Marked Size: 40 (EU)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use.
- Seller Location:Los Angeles, CA
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU583313382642
Vivienne Westwood
For someone who regularly swatted away the industry that made her, audacious British fashion designer Dame Vivienne Westwood certainly knew her way around a garment. And she knew how to provoke. “I don’t follow fashion,” Westwood once told the New York Times. “I’ve never been interested in it.” Collectors are certainly interested in her work, and vintage Vivienne Westwood dresses, handbags, lingerie and jackets have become very desirable over the years.
Westwood was born Vivienne Isabel Swire in a village in Derbyshire, in central England, but moved to London as a teen. In the early 1960s, she began to make her own necklaces and other jewelry and met an artist, activist and entrepreneur named Malcolm McLaren. They became involved romantically and she made clothes for him in the style of the Teddy Boys — the city’s music-crazed, occasionally violent teenagers at the time who wore high-waisted trousers and tailored velvet blazers that drew on Edwardian-era fashions.
Westwood and McLaren opened a vintage shop on King’s Road in London in 1971. The flared denim and peasant blouses of the 1960s, then still popular with the “peace and love” set, didn’t hold any weight for Westwood. Instead, she was interested in provocative, edgy apparel. She repaired used clothing and endeavored to create bold new designs from scratch.
Together Westwood and McLaren sold older rock-and-roll records, customized T-shirts with antiestablishment slogans, biker jackets and snug trousers inspired by the Marlon Brando film The Wild One as well as bondage fetish wear. The shop, once called Let It Rock and then Too Fast to Live, Too Young to Die before Sex became a more appropriate moniker, evolved into a youth mecca. The DIY garments — zippered tops, burnt tees emblazoned with anarchist messages — flew off the shelves. More notably, it brought punk to the masses.
Westwood was soon dressing the Sex Pistols, a band that McLaren managed, all the while bridging the gap between music and fashion in a manner that has reverberated throughout the industry for decades.
In 1981, the couple’s first fashion show marked the debut of their Pirate collection — a swashbuckler-themed line that sprang from Westwood’s research into Indigenous Americans and the “power garments” of the Louis XIV era. The collection’s ample proportions and cutting-edge tailoring countered punk’s geometry and tight latex fits as well as what rocker Adam Ant called the “Puritanism” that plagued England at the time. The Pirate collection’s enduring influence on the world of fashion as well as the theatrical work of designers such as John Galliano and Alexander McQueen is undeniable.
For the colorful corsets of her 1990 Portrait collection, Westwood drew on 18th-century oil paintings — her models donned the pearl necklaces that have become a social media star and a favorite of influencers and fashion lovers all over the world. For a jacket-and-shorts suit from her Fall/Winter 1996–97 Storm in a Teacup line, the designer used the extreme asymmetry of a tartan mash-up to confront, according to Westwood, “the horror of uniformity and minimalism.”
The self-taught Westwood enjoyed a rapid ascent in fashion, with British society embracing her looks and Vogue immortalizing them in its glossy pages. She garnered accolades for introducing corsets to the runway and dressed Kate Moss and Helena Bonham Carter. And an original Vivienne Westwood wedding dress is featured in 2008’s Sex and the City film.
The fires of political and environmental activism burned brightly for Westwood: She was a Greenpeace ambassador, having designed the organization’s official “Save the Arctic” logo; her clothing brand is committed to using recycled canvas and other eco-friendly materials in the production process; and in 2020, she protested the extradition of Julian Assange by suspending herself in a bird cage outside London’s Old Bailey court. But she will always be the grande dame of British design.
Find an extraordinary range of vintage Vivienne Westwood shirts, shoes, gowns and other items today on 1stDibs.
- Chanel Sand & Coral Platform Heels (Spring2012)By ChanelLocated in Los Angeles, CASand & coral platform heels by Chanel Spring 2012 Ready-to-Wear Sand colored, sparkly textured base Black ankle strap Silver metal buckle and log...Category
2010s Italian Shoes
- Chanel Turquoise Green Grecian Column Platform Wrap-Up Sandals Cruise 2018By ChanelLocated in Los Angeles, CAChanel Turquoise Green Grecian Column Platform Wrap-Up Sandals Cruise 2018 Collection Turquoise/Green Platform Column heel Gold-tone interlocking CC detail Open toe Strappy front C...Category
2010s Italian Strap Sandals
- Rick Owens Black and Transparent Beatle Bozo Tractor Boots Size 38 (Spring 2021)By Rick OwensLocated in Los Angeles, CARick Owens Black and Transparent Beatle Bozo Tractor Boots Size 38 Beatle Bozo Tractor Boots Spring 2021 Phlegethon Collection Black leather calfskin upper Transparent rubber sole S...Category
2010s Italian Boots
- Vintage Yves Saint Laurent Ball Heel Sandals (Circa 1990s)By Yves Saint LaurentLocated in Los Angeles, CABall heel sandals by Yves Saint Laurent Circa 1990's Made in Italy Black satin toe strap Black leather insole Ball heel covered in crystals Wooden sole Great vintage condition...Category
1990s Italian Shoes
- Bottega Veneta Pink Padded Leather MulesBy Bottega VenetaLocated in Los Angeles, CAPink padded leather mules by Bottega Veneta Made in Italy Mule heels Solid pink Quilted Slide-on Square toe Material: 100% lambskin; 100% lambskin lining Rubber-injected leather ou...Category
2010s Italian Shoes
- Bottega Veneta Red Padded Leather MulesBy Bottega VenetaLocated in Los Angeles, CARed padded leather mules by Bottega Veneta Made in Italy Mule heels Solid red Quilted Slide-on Square toe Material: 100% lambskin; 100% lambskin lining Rubber-injected leather outs...Category
2010s Italian Shoes
- Rare Brand New Chanel Ballerina Size 39 Tan Bow Tie ShoesBy ChanelLocated in Pasadena, CARare Brande New Chanel Ballerina Tan Leather Shoes. Wondderful Bow tie accents in the front with the Double CC underneath. The sole is a beautiful tan sole that accentuates the enti...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Low Heels
- Red Valentino Slip On Stiletto Pink Leather Heels with Strap, Women's PumpsBy ValentinoLocated in Milford, DERed Valentino Slip On Stiletto Pink Leather Heels with Strap, Women's Pumps These pumps pink patent leather upper with button-closure ankle straps a...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Heels
$720 Sale Price20% Off - GIANVITO ROSSI light taupe suede LATTICE LACE-UP Sandals Shoes 39By Gianvito RossiLocated in Zürich, CH100% authentic Gianvito Rossi 'Lattice' caged lace-up sandlas in light taupe suede. Have been worn and are in excellent condition. Measurements Imprinted Size 39 Shoe Size 39 Inside...Category
2010s Shoes
- PRADA taupe PYTHON Flat Espadrille Sandals Shoes 36.5By PradaLocated in Zürich, CH100% authentic Prada raffia flat sandals in sand and grey python with a beige sole. Have been worn once or twice and are in excellent condition. Measurem...Category
21st Century and Contemporary Shoes
- CHRISTIAN LOUBOUTIN black patent leather PIGALLE FOLLIES NICOGRAF Pumps Shoes 39By Christian LouboutinLocated in Zürich, CH100% authentic Christian Louboutin Pigalle Follies 100 Nicograf Pumps in black and white patent leather. Brand new. Measureme...Category
2010s Shoes
- CHANEL beige & black 2014 FRAYED CANVAS ESPADRILLE Pumps Shoes 38By ChanelLocated in Zürich, CH100% authentic Chanel espadrilles pumps in beige and black fringed canvas. Have been worn once and are in virtually new condition. Come with dust bag....Category
2010s Shoes
Recently Viewed
View AllRead More
Vivienne Westwood’s Punk Spirit Lives On in This ’90s Tartan Ensemble
The shorts suit in a mash-up of patterns with an asymmetrical cut speaks to the designer’s rebellious spirit.
The Personal Luxury Goods Market amid COVID-19
1stDibs dealers discuss the challenges of this unprecedented time, and the signs of hope.