Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm Mclaren in the 60s
The court date has just been announced for the three people who have been charged with selling punk-era knockoffs of Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm MaClaren designs, as well as artist Banksy's pieces. The date is currently set for August 18th, a full year after London police seized the fake goods from the suspects' homes as well as auction houses Kerry Taylor and Christie's. The three charged with selling the so-called vintage products claimed that they had been made by McLaren and Westwood in the Seventies, when the punk designers ran their King’s Road boutique, Sex, which was later renamed Seditionaries.
Vivienne Westwood during London's punk era
YES! I LOOK FORWARD TO #GROWINGYOUNGER
PLEASE SUBSCRIBE ME TO YOUR MAILING LIST.
A spokeswoman for London auction site Christie's noted that although demand for apparel and accessories from the glorified London-based punk era has dipped in the auction significantly, there has still been enough buzz over the years to inspire plenty of copycats.“Buyers and collectors remain very cautious and require cast iron provenance and documentation before they will consider purchasing relics from the heyday of Punk London,” she reported to WWD "Vivienne Westwood’s designs have been copied for more than 30 years — throughout her career,” a Westwood rep agreed, adding “We rarely pursue counterfeit goods. It takes a lot of time and resources.”
With the full cooperation of Christie's and the designers involved, the court case is sure set raise awareness in British copyrighting law. All the offended parties seem to hope that appropriate justice will be served, as designer Malcolm Mclaren briefly noted his wishes for the case. “I hope [the court case] gains as much media coverage and publicity as possible.”
Some looks from Westwood's late 80s/early 90s collections
Article Source: WWD
Photo Sources: BBC, ecopolis
-Alia Rajput
