
Claire Tole-Moir
Head of Department
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Sold for £1,792 inc. premium
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Head of Department
Provenance:
Gifted to the vendor by her boyfriend at the time, acquired from Sex in 1977.
The kilt and towelling bum-flap acquired by the vendor from Seditionaries in 1979.
The presence of the pink SEX label to the trousers indicates that these are from the first run of bondage trousers produced by McLaren & Westwood for sale in Sex at 430 King's Road from September 1976. They were produced in a sateen cotton known in the trade as 'Black Italian'. The refurb of the premises into Seditionaries three months later in December 1976 began a phase where such garments carried two labels, one for each brand, which suggests these were made during Sex's final phase.
The towelling bum-flap was designed for sale as a rear accessory to the bondage trousers, with dog-clips to be attached to the D-rings on each hip. The presence of the white encircled 'A' tag suggests that it was produced for sale in 1977, after the transition to Seditionaries.
The kilt attachment was introduced in the spring of 1977, as front and back accessories to the bondage trousers. Vivienne Westwood told Janet Street-Porter in a TV interview that year that - when added to the trousers - the silhouette evoked 'Greek peasant costumes'. Westwood went on to say that the kilt appearance also enhanced the notion of producing clothes for 'urban guerillas'.