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The Bowes Museum is proud to unveil a captivating new commission by Northumberland-based fashion and textile artist Meg Fletcher, whose work delves into identity, storytelling, and the theatrical nature of dress. Fletcher has created a series of bold, visually stunning flags inspired by the museum’s upcoming exhibition, Vivienne Westwood: Rebel – Storyteller – Visionary.
The flags will be on display from 1 March and the exhibition opens 28 March 2026. Titled Character Studies – 3 Acts, Fletcher’s installation features three specially designed flags displayed on the museum’s terrace from 1 March 2026.
These flags creatively link the rebellious spirit and visual legacy of Dame Vivienne Westwood (1941–2022) with the pioneering vision of The Bowes Museum’s founder, Joséphine Bowes (1825–1874). Each flag reimagines Joséphine Bowes as a contemporary figure, blending elements from her iconic pink-dress portrait (c.1858, attributed to Louis William Desanges) with silhouettes and motifs drawn from Westwood’s groundbreaking fashion archives and the museum’s historic collections:
• Rebel: Inspired by Westwood’s Pirates Collection (1981), this flag combines striking silhouettes with decorative influences from 16th and 18th-century porcelain vases housed at The Bowes Museum.
• Storyteller: Drawing on Westwood’s Mini-Crini (1986) and Harris Tweed (1987/88) collections, this flag reinterprets Bowes’s portrait details through a lens of historic and textile references.
• Visionary: Referencing Westwood’s Anglomania (1993/94) collection—famously worn by Kate Moss - this flag incorporates classical art from the museum’s collection, including The Birth of Venus by Pierre-Jacques Cazes.
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