Vivienne Westwood Exhibition Fuses Rebellion with Tradition
The Bowes Museum in County Durham has opened a major retrospective of Vivienne Westwood. The show runs until 6 September 2026 and centres on the designer’s work from the mid-1980s to the 2000s.
Curatorial scope and display
The exhibition was organised with Rachel Whitworth and features around 40 complete ensembles. It also displays individual garments, shoes, accessories, show invitations and magazine covers.
Gallery spaces include a dedicated Fashion and Textiles room. Rolls of fabric, a sewing machine and calico toiles recreate an active atelier atmosphere.
Collections and loans
Items come from several public institutions and private lenders. Manchester Art Gallery and the Fashion Museum Bath are among the lenders.
However, one private collector’s holdings are the most visible in the galleries. Peter Smithson, an associate curator and long-time collector, has assembled much of the material on show.
Peter Smithson: collector and curator
Smithson began collecting Westwood pieces about 30 years ago. His interest was sparked by an early television appearance in 1988, when models presented looks from the Time Machine A/W 1988 collection.
His first formal purchase was a colourful crown from the A/W 1987 Harris Tweed collection. That piece exemplifies Westwood’s mix of humour and heritage.
Design highlights and techniques
Key looks on display include creative references to 18th-century painting and costume. The show deliberately pairs garments with the museum’s paintings, sculpture and decorative objects.
Visitors will see work that combines theatrical construction with fine craft. Examples include a Boulle-print moleskin dress treated so gold ink crackles when stretched.
- Harris Tweed (A/W 1987): crown by Stephen Jones, faux fur cape, corsetry and crinoline elements.
- Portrait (A/W 1990): silk scarves referencing François Boucher’s Daphnis and Chloe (1743).
- Voyage to Cythera (A/W 1988/89): fig-leaf tights, faux leopard “Princess” jacket and the Principal Boy shirt.
Art history and theatricality
Westwood often drew on 18th-century sources. She deliberately referenced painters such as Watteau to create mood and movement in fabric.
The show highlights how gestures and textiles were used to echo paint and frame gilding. It reinforces Westwood’s reputation as a storyteller through dress.
Legacy and prior collaborations
Vivienne Westwood died in 2022 at the age of 81. Throughout her career she championed museums as places of learning.
Her relationship with the Bowes Museum began in 2006, when she attended a lace exhibition and contributed garments. The museum later hosted a touring shoes exhibition covering 1973–2011.
Across the displays, the exhibition fuses Vivienne Westwood’s rebellion with historical tradition. The presentation makes clear how radical ideas were sewn into classical references.
This report appears courtesy of Filmogaz.com. The Bowes Museum exhibition remains on view in Durham until 6 September 2026.
