Terms and Conditions
The artist, title and date of the work must be listed anywhere the image is reproduced:
Sex, London (retailer)
Vivienne Westwood (designer)
Malcolm McLaren (designer)
Court shoes (1974-1976)
leather, metal, rubber
(c-d) 17.3 × 8.5 × 23.2 cm (each)
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased, 1985
Photo: National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Where possible, the image must be reproduced in full (no cropping or over-printing). If you wish to use a detail of the work, a full reproduction of the work must also be reproduced elsewhere in the publication.
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Court shoes
(1974-1976)
Medium
leather, metal, rubber
Measurements
(c-d) 17.3 × 8.5 × 23.2 cm (each)
Credit Line
National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne
Purchased, 1985
Gallery location
Not on display
About this work
For Westwood, punk was a way to confront traditional gender roles and beauty ideals. In 1970s London, she became an icon of punk style through the clothing she and McLaren created for their boutique SEX. DIY in spirit, their designs drew heavily from queer and sadomasochistic subcultures to provoke and disrupt. By transforming cheap, accessible materials into confronting garments featuring offensive and explicit graphics, Westwood showed how fashion could become a tool for resistance, used to claim agency and power.
Artwork Details
Place/s of Execution
London, England
Inscription
(c) embossed (vertically) in insole: ESPECIALLY FOR / SEX / 430 KINGS RD. / CHELSEA / MADE IN ENGLAND
(d) embossed (vertically) in insole: ESPECIALLY FOR / SEX / 430 KINGS RD. / CHELSEA / MADE IN ENGLAND
Accession Number
CT18.c-d-1985
Department
International Fashion and Textiles
This digital record has been made available on NGV Collection Online through the generous support of Professor AGL Shaw AO Bequest