Outlaws (fashion Renegades Of Leigh Bowery's 1980s London)

Outlaws dives into the anarchic energy of London’s 1980s club scene, celebrating the avant-garde, experimental designs of Leigh Bowery and his fellow fashion renegades, including John Galliano, Stephen Linard, BodyMap, Pam Hogg, Rachel Auburn and Wayne Hemingway.

‘Dress as though your life depends on it, or don’t bother.’
(Leigh Bowery, 1985)

Outlaws dives into the anarchic energy of London’s 1980s club scene, celebrating the avant-garde, experimental designs of Leigh Bowery and his fellow fashion renegades, including John Galliano, Stephen Linard, BodyMap, Pam Hogg, Rachel Auburn and Wayne Hemingway. 

This unique and daring creative movement sparked an explosion of outrageous fashion. Outlaws features specially commissioned photography of original outfits crafted by 28 trailblazing clothes designers. They are accompanied by first-hand accounts from musician Holly Johnson, DJ Mark Moore, artist Peter Doig and photographer Dave Swindells, as well as rare photos and flyers from club nights where these outfits were worn, such as Bowery''s legendary Taboo.

Outlaws captures a subculture that defied norms and pushed the boundaries. It is a tribute to the visionaries who reshaped British pop culture and blazed a trail to high fashion.

Into Taboo - Martin Green

Timeline

Introduction - NJ Stevenson

The Designers

Leigh Bowery

Annie LaPaz

Rachel Auburn

Now Everything is New - Iain R Webb

John Crancher

Peter Doig

In conversation with Peter Doig

Gallagher Wells

John Flett

Juliana Sissons

In conversation with Holly Johnson

Bodymap

Dean Bright

A Year in Fashion - Halle Bakke’s diaries

Boys Wonder

English Eccentrics

PX

Judy Blame

John Galliano

The Parish Noticeboard - Daniel Scott

Pam Hogg

Demob

In conversation with Mark Moore

Christopher Nemeth

Nocturne

Stephen Linard

In conversation with Dave Swindells

David Cabaret

Mark & Syrie

Clothes for London Warriors - Syrie Panton

Degville’s Dispensary

Richard Torry

Red or Dead

In conversation with Wayne & Gerardine Hemingway

Vaughn & Franks

Elmaz Hüsyein

Mark Lawrence

Afterword - Claire Lawrie

‘A sumptuous feast of images and a riveting narrative about an era when getting dressed up was an act of defiance. Green and Stevenson’s veteran status brings authenticity and further depth to the story, ensuring that Bowery’s legacy and that of his fellow fashion rebels live on.’

‘Delightfully OTT … Evokes the spirit of an age’

‘Brings to light a creative community of people who together influenced and changed the landscape of British popular culture in the mid-1980s.’

‘[Enhances] the anarchic and bold energy of Leigh Bowery and the fashion renegades, pioneers of this avant-garde movement.’

Martin Green was a regular on the 1980s club circuit and went on to run the legendary nightclub Smashing in the early 90s. He is co-curator of the exhibition Outlaws: Fashion Renegades of 80s London with NJ Stevenson, which opens at the Fashion and Textile Museum, London in October 2024. Green has compiled 30 albums and has a show on Soho Radio. He has co-ordinated fashion show music for Katherine Hamnett, Pringle and Pucci and has DJ’d at events for Pulp, Prada and Paul McCartney.

NJ Stevenson began her fashion curatorial career in 2008 and has since worked on many projects with venues including the Fashion