Not currently on display at the V&A

Clean Up or Die

Pair of Boots
1989 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Pair of black zip ankle boots.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Parts
This object consists of 2 parts.

  • Boot
  • Boot
TitleClean Up or Die (named collection)
Brief description
Pair of black zip ankle boots, designed by Katherine Hamnett, England, 1989.
Physical description
Pair of black zip ankle boots.
Gallery label
LADY'S OUTFIT, "CLEAN UP OR DIE" Designed by Katharine Hamnett (British) Studded leather jacket, stretch velvet catsuit and top 1990 Given by Katharine Hamnett T.209 to b-1990 MAN'S OUTFIT, "CLEAN UP OR DIE" Designed by Katharine Hamnett (British) Studded leather jacket and trousers with cotton T-shirt 1990 Given by Katharine Hamnett T.208 to c-1990 Katharine Hamnett believes that she stands alone "against the rise in fascist dressing". Her work has been described as an exercise in radical chic. Irreverent political views and an instinct for bucking the establishment have made her famous and turned a tiny pre-washed cottons business, started with a £500 loan in 1979, into a hugely successful global operation. While solidly positioned in the avant garde, Hamnett's work is steeped in nostalgia. School uniforms, sixties starlets and rockers have always been her inspiration, while her slogan T-shirts bring us back to the days of Woodstock and Vietnam war sit-ins. Her latest winter collection, with the slogan "Clean Up or Die" studded on the backs of leather bikers jackets, is characteristically quotable, pithy and sexy. The jackets are richly embellished, the entire surface covered with trinkets and charms, endowing and protecting the wearer, like amulets for battle. The man's outfit features classic Hamnett slogan T-shirt and skull and cross-bone belt buckle. The lady's lush velour catsuit is soft and slinky, clinging to every curve and looks appropriate for an acrobat or trapeze artiste. She is wearing a matching "James Bond" top, a characteristic reference by Hamnett to popular modern culture.(1990)
Credit line
Given by the designer
Object history
Registered File number 1990/873. Part of an outfit T.209 to D-1990.
Production
Autumn / Winter 'Clean Up or Die' collection 1990
Bibliographic reference
C. Wilcox & V. Mendes. Modern Fashion in Detail. V&A Publications, 1991, p.128
Collection
Accession number
T.209C&D-1990

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Record createdDecember 6, 2010
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