She was born on 8 April 1941, as Vivienne Isabel Swire, in England. Her first job was at age 17, in a factory. Her first husband was Derek Westwood, with whom she had a son. While married, she became a teacher. Her first marriage eventually went kaput and she met Malcolm McIaren, who opened her eyes to the world of art.
She first started selling homemade jewelry in 1971 out of her 2nd husband's shop, and over the decades has continued to take the fashion world by force.
Her mission is to help save the Earth, and make consumers more aware of their imprint on the Earth. And she does it with incredible passion & purpose; while not giving a shit about what anyone thinks. She embraced Punk when it was big, and continued to make it her bitch after it had faded.
She is a huge environmentalist, and has given and supported enumerable eco-based organizations:
Reprieve and Liberty
Amnesty International
Environmental Justice Foundation
Friends of the Earth
Green Peace's Arctic Campaign
In 2012, she donated 1.6 million pounds to rainforest charity Cool Earth: "If we don't save the rainforest, we can forget about it, we won't save the Earth."
There is a Eco-friendly range of stationary available on her website and in stores.
She has also penned a novel, Active Resistance to Propaganda. And of course, there's a blog: Get a Life
