Vivienne Westwood remembered as 'revolutionary and rebellious fashion force'

A 2002 file picture shows Vivienne Westwood acknowledging the audience after her show during the Spring/Summer 2003 ready-to-wear collections in Paris. Photo: AFP

British fashion designer Vivienne Westwood, who died at the age of 81 on Thursday (Dec 29), was known not only for her eye-catching pieces which are often credited with bringing punk and new wave fashion into the mainstream, but also as a vocal activist who campaigned for a number of issues, including nuclear disarmament and animal rights.

Westwood infiltrated the fashion scene with her eccentric and androgynous designs, ultimately establishing herself as the pioneer of the punk fashion movement.