A large silk square/head scarf, 'The Swarm Of Cherubs', Vivienne Westwood, 1980s
View Similar Items
A large silk square/head scarf, 'The Swarm Of Cherubs', Vivienne Westwood, 1980s
About the Item
- Designer:
- Brand:
- Dimensions:Width: 36 in (91.44 cm)Diameter: 36 in (91.44 cm)Length: 36 in (91.44 cm)
- Style:Baroque (In the Style Of)
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Material Notes:There are some small and slight marks on this scarf, most likely from ink used on the scarf itself. Photographs shown illustrate these.
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. There are some slight marks on one edge of the scarf, as clearly indicated in the photos above. Otherwise this is in 'unworn' condition. This scarf has never been used.
- Seller Location:Greyabbey, GB
- Reference Number:Seller: FB08741stDibs: LU309217742402
Vivienne Westwood
For someone who regularly swatted away the industry that made her, audacious British fashion designer Dame Vivienne Westwood certainly knew her way around a garment. And she knew how to provoke. “I don’t follow fashion,” Westwood once told the New York Times. “I’ve never been interested in it.” Collectors are certainly interested in her work, and vintage Vivienne Westwood dresses, handbags, lingerie and jackets have become very desirable over the years.
Westwood was born Vivienne Isabel Swire in a village in Derbyshire, in central England, but moved to London as a teen. In the early 1960s, she began to make her own necklaces and other jewelry and met an artist, activist and entrepreneur named Malcolm McLaren. They became involved romantically and she made clothes for him in the style of the Teddy Boys — the city’s music-crazed, occasionally violent teenagers at the time who wore high-waisted trousers and tailored velvet blazers that drew on Edwardian-era fashions.
Westwood and McLaren opened a vintage shop on King’s Road in London in 1971. The flared denim and peasant blouses of the 1960s, then still popular with the “peace and love” set, didn’t hold any weight for Westwood. Instead, she was interested in provocative, edgy apparel. She repaired used clothing and endeavored to create bold new designs from scratch.
Together Westwood and McLaren sold older rock-and-roll records, customized T-shirts with antiestablishment slogans, biker jackets and snug trousers inspired by the Marlon Brando film The Wild One as well as bondage fetish wear. The shop, once called Let It Rock and then Too Fast to Live, Too Young to Die before Sex became a more appropriate moniker, evolved into a youth mecca. The DIY garments — zippered tops, burnt tees emblazoned with anarchist messages — flew off the shelves. More notably, it brought punk to the masses.
Westwood was soon dressing the Sex Pistols, a band that McLaren managed, all the while bridging the gap between music and fashion in a manner that has reverberated throughout the industry for decades.
In 1981, the couple’s first fashion show marked the debut of their Pirate collection — a swashbuckler-themed line that sprang from Westwood’s research into Indigenous Americans and the “power garments” of the Louis XIV era. The collection’s ample proportions and cutting-edge tailoring countered punk’s geometry and tight latex fits as well as what rocker Adam Ant called the “Puritanism” that plagued England at the time. The Pirate collection’s enduring influence on the world of fashion as well as the theatrical work of designers such as John Galliano and Alexander McQueen is undeniable.
For the colorful corsets of her 1990 Portrait collection, Westwood drew on 18th-century oil paintings — her models donned the pearl necklaces that have become a social media star and a favorite of influencers and fashion lovers all over the world. For a jacket-and-shorts suit from her Fall/Winter 1996–97 Storm in a Teacup line, the designer used the extreme asymmetry of a tartan mash-up to confront, according to Westwood, “the horror of uniformity and minimalism.”
The self-taught Westwood enjoyed a rapid ascent in fashion, with British society embracing her looks and Vogue immortalizing them in its glossy pages. She garnered accolades for introducing corsets to the runway and dressed Kate Moss and Helena Bonham Carter. And an original Vivienne Westwood wedding dress is featured in 2008’s Sex and the City film.
The fires of political and environmental activism burned brightly for Westwood: She was a Greenpeace ambassador, having designed the organization’s official “Save the Arctic” logo; her clothing brand is committed to using recycled canvas and other eco-friendly materials in the production process; and in 2020, she protested the extradition of Julian Assange by suspending herself in a bird cage outside London’s Old Bailey court. But she will always be the grande dame of British design.
Find an extraordinary range of vintage Vivienne Westwood shirts, shoes, gowns and other items today on 1stDibs.
- A carved Bakelite framed and cream enamelled mesh handbag, 1930s.Located in Greyabbey, County DownA beautiful bag made from cream enamelled segments all interlocked, in the style of Whiting and Davis, with a bold hand carved cream Bakelite frame and chain handle, with stylised fl...Category
1930s British Evening Bags and Minaudières
- A white micro beaded evening bag, for Saks Fifth Avenue, France, 1950s.Located in Greyabbey, County DownOf high French quality workmanship, this very smart and classic evening bag is all hand beaded, and has a very unusual and stylised opening/closure, of clear pastes set in gilded met...Category
1950s French Evening Bags and Minaudières
- A cream beaded evening bag, with a fabulous jewelled frame, Josef, USA, 1940s.By Bags by JosefLocated in Greyabbey, County DownThis rare and iconic clutch bag, in the realm of vintage and collectable handbags, made for Saks Fifth Avenue by Josef, is crowned with an exubera...Category
1940s American Clutches
- An embroidered floral silk and ivorine framed small handbag, English, 1920s.Located in Greyabbey, County DownAn exquisite and unique little handbag, with a carved Bakelite and hand coloured frame, in a stylised floral motif, with a beautifully coloured si...Category
1920s British Evening Bags and Minaudières
- A hand embroidered handbag, depicting a rustic scene, Morabito, Paris, 1950sBy MorabitoLocated in Greyabbey, County DownA beautifully hand stitched and sewn handbag with a charming antique rustic scene with two figures by master craftsmen and luxury good manufacturer Morabito. executed in silk, in fin...Category
1950s French Evening Bags and Minaudières
- An exquisite fine micro beaded subtly coloured large handbag with jewelled frameLocated in Greyabbey, County DownA very fine and detailed large micro beaded bag, with exquisite detail and nuanced colouring, still fresh and intact. Gently gleaming with a sumptuous...Category
1860s French Evening Bags and Minaudières
- LANVIN teal blue 100% silk made in france frayed edge rectangular scarfBy Lanvin ParisLocated in Hong Kong, NTLANVIN teal blue 100% silk made in france frayed edge rectangular scarf Reference: CNLE/A00272 Brand: Lanvin Designer: Alber Elbaz Material: Silk Color: Blue Pattern: Solid Lining: B...Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Scarves
- Hermes Early America by F.de la Perriere Silk ScarfBy HermèsLocated in Paris, FRHermès "Early America" by F.de la Perriere silk scarf featuring a grey border, a Hermès signature. Circa 1959 In good vintage condition. Made in France. 35,4in. (90cm) X 35,4in. (9...Category
1990s French Scarves
- Hermès "La Vie à Cheval" 90cm Silk Twill Scarf by Laurence Bourthoumieux ToutsyBy HermèsLocated in Banner Elk, NCHermès "La Vie à Cheval" 90cm Silk Twill Scarf by Laurence Bourthoumieux Toutsy, 2001. "La Vie à Cheval", or French for "Life on Horseback" depicts a crosshatched pattern with variou...Category
Early 2000s French Scarves
- Big CHANEL Square ScarfBy ChanelLocated in Paris, FRCondition : very good Material : silk Colors : red, black, multicolor Measurements: 140 x 140 cm Details : the composition label is missing. The rolled edge is in very good conditi...Category
Late 20th Century French Scarves
- HERMES Carré MuseumBy Philippe Ledoux, HermèsLocated in Paris, FRBeautiful carré from Hermès in silk. Condition: good It was cleaned but some stains remain Made in France Materials: 100% silk Colors: blue, brown Dimensions: 90x90cm Designer: Phil...Category
1960s French Scarves
$480 - Multi-Colors of Abstract Swiss Cotton with Micro-Finished Edges HandkerchiefLocated in New York, NYMulti-colors of abstract Swiss cotton is accented with micro-finished edges in this beautiful handkerchief. Made in Italy, it measures 11 1/2 inches by 12 inches.Category
1980s Italian Scarves