Pioneering British fashion designer Vivienne Westwood passed away on Wednesday, and Halsey has taken to Instagram to post a heartfelt tribute to the woman who designed many of the looks the chart-topping singer has worn over the years.
Westwood designed the looks that defined the 1970s British punk rock and new wave era, like clothing slashed to pieces and held together with safety pins, bondage suits and other fetish-inspired pieces, and T-shirts featuring slogans and artwork that pushed social and sexual boundaries.
SEX, the London boutique run by Westwood and her then-partner Malcolm McLaren, was the meeting point for, and occasional employer of, the musicians who'd become punk rock and new wave stars, including The Sex Pistols, who McLaren would go on to manage. Westwood later became a global fashion icon and activist for causes like climate change and nuclear disarmament.
On Instagram, Halsey wrote, "Viv! My friend, my idol, my icon. There is not enough time or space in this format to appropriately describe the ways you impacted music, fashion, culture, and the like. Your legacy is immortal and eternal. I hope we will all continue to break boundaries and question institutions in your example and memory."
They concluded, "I will cherish all of our conversations and teas (and *tea*! you had the best stories). Love always, and long live Queen Viv."
Halsey's message was accompanied by a slideshow of themselves wearing a variety of Westwood creations — including several featured in her film If I Can't Have Love I Want Power — as well as a photo of Westwood and Halsey sitting together at a fashion show, and one that shows the singer deep in discussion with Westwood and Pamela Anderson.
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