Vivienne Westwood, the influential U.K. fashion iconoclast who pioneered the punk look, died today (December 29th). She was 81 and passed away peacefully at home with her family, according to Westwood's eponymous fashion house, which announced the news on social media. No cause of death was revealed.
Dubbed "the high priestess of punk" and the "Queen of Extreme" by the media, Westwood first made her mark on the fashion scene in the Seventies after she met Malcolm McLaren, an artist and musician who was also the manager of the Sex Pistols. With McLaren, she co-managed an infamous clothing store called SEX and became one of the main fashion designers of the punk movement. In 2022, a fictionalized version of Westwood was played by Talulah Riley in the Danny Boyle-directed Hulu mini-series Pistol, about the rise of the Sex Pistols.
From her punk roots, Westwood went on to enjoy a long and very successful fashion career that included a string of triumphant runway shows in London, Paris, Milan and New York. Her designs have been shown in museum collections throughout the world, and she was even honored by the Queen of England multiple times — ironic considering how vehemently the Sex Pistols had railed against the monarchy.
But Westwood, while still rebellious and provocative in her later life, had adopted a new philosophy. "Vivienne considered herself a Taoist," reads the statement from Westwood's team, announcing her death. "She wrote, 'Tao spiritual system. There was never more need for the Tao today. Tao gives you a feeling that you belong to the cosmos and gives purpose to your life; it gives you such a sense of identity and strength to know you're living the life you can live and therefore ought to be living: make full use of your character and full use of your life on earth.'"
