Vivienne Westwood’s Personal Wardrobe Is for Sale
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These days, if you want, you can wait in line to buy the sweater Chloë Sevigny wore when she met her husband, or the denim skirt and silky hot pink top Jenna Lyons wore to the 2012 Met Gala. And if you miss the opportunity, no need to worry. In a few month's time, another fashionable famous person will surely put the contents of their wardrobe up for sale.
This kind of celebrity closet sale is not necessarily new, but lately it's become more of a phenomenon—not because the lure of incredible clothing has become more appealing, but because it is no longer enough on its own. For young fashion fans, personality is paramount. Shopping a closet sale is a way of tapping in to an icon's personal taste. So imagine if Vivienne Westwood, whose work has experienced a new level of appreciation among Gen Z, were around today to host one. It would produce a seismic shock on the order of the city’s surprise 4.8-magnitude earthquake in April.
Luckily for Mother Nature (whom Westwood, who died in 2022, famously loved), Christie’s is hosting a more civilized sale, sans four block lines, of the British designer’s personal wardrobe today in London. More than 200 items will be auctioned off, all pulled from over four decades of her career and hand-selected by her widower and current Vivienne Westwood creative director, Andreas Kronthaler. The proceeds will go toward organizations Westwood was an advocate for, including the Vivienne Foundation, Amnesty International, Doctors Without Borders, and Greenpeace.
In a press release, Christie’s private and iconic collections director Adrian Hume-Sayer said: “Vivienne Westwood’s sense of activism, art, and style is embedded in each and every piece that she created. The pre-sale exhibition and auctions at Christie’s will celebrate her extraordinary vision with a selection of looks that mark significant moments not only in her career, but also in her personal life. This will be a unique opportunity for audiences to encounter both the public and the private world of the great Dame Vivienne Westwood, and to raise funds for the causes in which she so ardently believed.”
Some standout pieces from the auction include a two-piece navy blue set from Westwood’s Autumn/Winter 1983–84 collection, “Witches,” which was inspired by both witchcraft and Pop artist Keith Haring’s graphic code of magical symbols. There’s also a voluminous corset gown made of taupe silk taffeta from the “Dressed to Scale” Autumn/Winter 1989–99 collection, informed by the extremes illustrated by Victorian-era British satirical cartoonist James Gillray. You can see photos of the pieces on the runway, of course, but also on Westwood herself; the designer had a habit of breathing even more life into her work by wearing her own designs.
While some designers like Jonathan Anderson or Yohji Yamamoto are known for their stark uniforms, Westwood was known for her eccentric punk style, off and on the runway. She lived in the universe that she created.
And while there will never be another Vivienne Westwood, now you can own for yourself a piece of fashion history—something she not only made, but also loved enough to wear. It’s the kind of opportunity you can bet won’t pop up again soon.
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