FRANCE: Vivienne Westwood, the "Grande Dame" of UK fashion, presents a wacky and eclectic spring/summer 2013 collection inside the British ambassador's residence in Paris

Record ID: 644007

  • Title: FRANCE: Vivienne Westwood, the "Grande Dame" of UK fashion, presents a wacky and eclectic spring/summer 2013 collection inside the British ambassador's residence in Paris
  • Date: 2nd October 2012
  • Summary: PARIS, FRANCE (SEPTEMBER 29, 2012) (REUTERS) EXTERIOR OF THE BRITISH AMBASSADOR'S RESIDENCE IN PARIS WHERE THE VIVIENNE WESTWOOD CATWALK SHOW IS HELD MODELS GETTING THEIR HAIR STYLED BACKSTAGE MODEL SHOWING OFF HER NAILS BACKSTAGE MODEL GETTING HER MAKEUP APPLIED BACKSTAGE MODEL GETTING HER HAIR STYLED BACKSTAGE MODEL GETTING HER MAKEUP APPLIED BACKSTAGE MODEL GETTING HER HAIR STYLED BACKSTAGE MODEL GETTING HER MAKEUP APPLIED BACKSTAGE BRITISH DESIGNER VIVIENNE WESTWOOD SPEAKING WITH JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (English) DESIGNER VIVIENNE WESTWOOD, SAYING: "It's inspired by very different things. It's inspired by the paintings of [Diego] Velasquez, the costumes in it. It's inspired by a print that I saw on a, outside of a Chinese tea, just things that have no connection, but I just started to be inspired. And what happens when you do that is that you absorb already the world you live in, but you find a way through these stupid motifs to start to do something, and slowly, you project a vision of what you would like onto your fashion program." GUESTS WAITING FOR THE VIVIENNE WESTWOOD SHOW TO BEGIN (SOUNDBITE) (English) BRITISH AMBASSADOR TO FRANCE SIR PETER RICKETTS, SAYING: "We've never done anything as big as this, or as high-profile as this, so this is a bit of an experiment to see if you can use a wonderful old house and turn to it for new purposes. And use it to show innovative Britain in France. And I think it's going to work, it's going to be great." MODEL GEORGIA MAY JAGGER WAITING FOR THE VIVIENNE WESTWOOD SHOW TO START
  • Embargoed: 17th October 2012 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: France
  • Country: France
  • Topics: Entertainment
  • Reuters ID: LVA5WZSEMHYRHL75CFK4TAROP1GY
  • Story Text: The venue for Vivienne Westwood's spring/summer 2013 catwalk show could not have been more fitting - the "Grande Dame" of British fashion, credited for bringing modern punk into the mainstream, revealed an exotic and eccentric collection inside the sumptuous British Ambassador's residence in Paris on Saturday (September 29).
    "We've never done anything as big as this, or as high-profile as this, so this is a bit of an experiment to see if you can use a wonderful old house and turn to it for new purposes," British Ambassador to France Sir Peter Ricketts told Reuters prior to the show. "And I think it's going to work, it's going to be great."
    The presentation was typical Westwood: theatrical, over-the-top and stunning. Models wore sky-high bouffant hairdos and clown-like makeup. The looks shown on the catwalk traversed several centuries and continents, with references to everything from artist Diego Velasquez to Chinese tea prints and the Ballets Russes to Queen Elizabeth II.
    Westwood told Reuters backstage that her latest collection wasn't built around a certain theme. On the contrary, it had transpired in an organic and haphazard manner: "It's inspired by very different things... things that have no connection, but I just started to be inspired. And what happens when you do that is that you absorb already the world you live in, but you find a way through these stupid motifs to start to do something, and slowly, you project a vision of what you would like onto your fashion program."
    The collection, entitled "Global Exotic," seemed to be aimed at the globetrotting tribal woman with all its turbans and billowing trousers.
    Though Westwood is 71, she still presides over British fashion nearly four decades after entering the industry, presiding over a multi-million pound empire known for its rebellious, tongue-in-cheek approach.
    "She's a genius, she is the queen, she is the tsarist of fashion," said New York fashion event producer Susanne Bartsch who was a front-row guest at the Westwood show. "I think without Vivienne I don't know where we would be in fashion."
    Rock royalty Georgia May Jagger (the daughter of Mick Jagger and Georgia Hall) who also attended the runway presentation said she appreciated the whimsical nature of Westwood's creations: "She is my favourite designer... I think she represents being free, not... constricting yourself to the rules of style."
    The flame-haired designer began her sartorial career in 1970, teaming up with former partner and Sex Pistols manager Malcolm McLaren to shape the iconic look of London' punk movement (i.e. slogan T-shirts, chunky platforms, Union Jacks, safety pins, etc.) via the stock they sold at their avant-garde, alternative clothing boutique on King's Road, West London.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
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