Rare Vivienne Westwood Sells for £13,000

What was thought to be the largest private collection of Vivienne Westwood to be sold outside London went under the hammer at Tennants Auctioneers, North Yorkshire on 15^th August. Vivienne Westwood: Five Decades at the Cutting Edge offered nearly 300 garments by the iconic British designer, who broke the rules of fashion and had an extraordinary influence on British culture and design.

The collection was put together over the last twenty years by Susan Baker, a passionate admirer of everything Westwood. Having collected historical costume since the 1990s, a visit to the landmark Vivienne Westwood retrospective at the V&A in 2004 proved pivotal. Immediately feeling a connection with the designer, Baker said: “Unlike Vivienne, in the 1970s I wasn’t a punk rocker, but I’ve always been a rebel. I love how her clothes are an expression of dissatisfaction with the status quo, of political rebellion.”

Leading the sale was two-piece Harlequin Mini-Crini from the Voyage to Cythera Collection, A/W 1989, inspired by figures from the Italian ‘Commedia Dell’Arte’ and the paintings of Jean-Antoine Watteau, which sold for £13,000 (all figures exclude buyer’s premium). It is believed to have been a runway piece, never in production, and had been purchased from someone who worked in Westwood’s studio.  From the same collection was a Harris Tweed ‘Savile’ Jacket and Nude Leggings, the latter featuring a mirrored fig leaf, which sold for £2,800.

Having attracted collectors from around the globe, further notable lots included a Red Tartan Tailored Jacket, which sold for £900, a 'Time Machine Collection' Blue Harris Tweed Tailored Jacket from A/W 1988-89, which sold for £850, and a pair of 'Portrait Collection' Black Velvet Stretch Leggings from A/W 1991, which sold for £600.

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