Vivienne Westwood’s love of jewellery to become travelling retrospective

As jewellery played an integral role in defining Vivienne Westwood’s look, fans of her work will be able to visit a retrospective of the late British designer’s love of the art, entitled Vivienne Westwood & Jewellery.

The exhibition, which “will explore the design codes and subversive spirit of the British design house through this prism”, marks the first time the special archive and runway pieces from across four decades have been curated and will be displayed as a collection.

The exhibition will offer a retrospective look at the house’s extensive history of jewellery design “encompassing Westwood’s sensibilities for historical reference, the subversion of past and present ideas – and socio-political themes”.

Visitors can expect pairings of jewellery and garments – each creation “presented as an ‘objet d’art’, surrounded by a ‘chaos’ of wall prints and sounds, catwalk looks, imagery, and video, recalling iconic past collections and runway shows, and offering a unique perspective into the Vivienne Westwood world”.

The exhibition will opening at the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Wellington, from 14 December until 27 April 2025. It will then travel onto Shanghai in the spring while Europe and US dates and locations are also yet to be announced.