#anyway RIP Dame Westwood

[http-numbah5]

okay so what is a thing that you knew had a very slim chance of happening but then when the very slim chance of it happening closed off, you took it personally?

for me? Dame Vivienne Westwood's passing. I knew I probably wouldn't meet her but the fact that she was alive felt like I could??

[bitter69uk]

Born on this day 83 years ago (19 September 1940): effervescent and eccentric fuchsia-haired doyenne of British fashion, Dame Zandra Rhodes. She is of course the undisputed queen of the elaborately bejewelled float-y chiffon caftan, but I prefer Rhodes’ response to the rise of punk in 1977. To the revulsion of punk purists, Rhodes launched her own deluxe haute couture interpretation of punk fashion, with artful jagged rips and tears, embellished with glittering safety pins and chains! Some have claimed this made her “the high priestess of punk”, although I suspect the late Vivienne Westwood disagreed. Anyway, over the decades her clientele has numbered international jet set superstar names like Elizabeth Taylor, Jacqueline Kennedy, Cher, Bianca Jagger, Barbra Streisand and Princesses Margaret and Diana. But as far as I’m concerned, no one looked better in Rhodes’ signature caftans than drag mega-star Divine! (Rhodes and Divine were friends in the 1980s and in fact the only times I’ve ever spotted Rhodes socially, it’s been backstage at John Waters’ events in London, accompanied by Helena Kennedy QC and transgender trailblazer April Ashley). Pictured: portrait of Rhodes by Alun Callender, 2022.

[bitter69uk]

Born on this day 84 years ago (19 September 1940): effervescent and eccentric fuchsia-haired doyenne of British fashion, Dame Zandra Rhodes. She is of course the undisputed queen of the elaborately bejeweled float-y chiffon caftan, but I prefer Rhodes’ response to the rise of punk in 1977. To the revulsion of punk purists, Rhodes launched her own deluxe haute couture interpretation of punk fashion, with artful jagged rips and tears, embellished with glittering safety pins and chains! Some have claimed this made her “the high priestess of punk”, although I suspect the late Vivienne Westwood disagreed. Anyway, over the decades her clientele has numbered international jet set superstar names like Elizabeth Taylor, Jacqueline Kennedy, Cher, Bianca Jagger, Barbra Streisand and Princesses Margaret and Diana. But as far as I’m concerned, no one looked better in Rhodes’ signature caftans than drag mega-star Divine! (Rhodes and Divine were friends in the 1980s and in fact the only times I’ve ever spotted Rhodes socially, it’s been backstage at John Waters’ events in London, accompanied by Helena Kennedy QC and the late transgender trailblazer April Ashley). Pictured: portrait of Rhodes by Simon Emmett, 2018.