Dame Vivienne Westwood died on Thursday, December 29, in South London. The enduring designer was 81-years-old, and her representatives said in a press release that she was surrounded by family and friends on the time of her passing.
Her husband Andreas Kronthaler, with whom she steadily collaborated on creative projects, said, “I’ll proceed with Vivienne in my heart. We’ve been working until the top and she or he has given me loads of things to get on with. Thanks darling.”
The creative artist was reportedly busy up until the time of her death, working on art, her writing, and on The Vivienne Foundation, a not-for-profit she founded along with her sons and granddaughter this 12 months with the goal to boost awareness and create tangible change round her primary interests as an activist. Their 4 pillars of change are listed as: Climate Change, Stop War, Defend Human Rights, and Protest Capitalism.
“Capitalism is a criminal offense,” Westwood is quoted as saying. “It’s the foundation reason for war, climate change, and corruption.”
The clothier was born on April 8, 1941, within the village of Tintwistle, Cheshire, to a middle-class family, and worked for a period in a factory after which as a college teacher. She was known for bringing the varieties of punk and latest wave music into the mainstream, and ran the famous SEX boutique along with her second husband, Malcolm McLaren.
She said, “I used to be messianic about punk, seeing if one could put a spoke within the system indirectly.”
In a 2012 interview, she explained, “I at all times design for a parallel universe; a world that doesn’t exist. You recognize, one which’s like this but higher.. To me, a hero is someone who’s prepared to stay their neck out, to step out and walk tall, and to live life. That’s how I see a hero.”
Aimée Lutkin is the weekend editor at ELLE.com. Her writing has appeared in Jezebel, Glamour, Marie Claire and more. Her first book, The Lonely Hunter, shall be released by Dial Press in February 2022.
