Daily Front Row

2009 May 26

Children of the Chic

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Vivienne and Ben Westwood
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(NEW YORK) Ben Westwood, photographer, self-proclaimed pornographer, brother of Agent Provacateur founder Joe Torre, and--of course--son of designer extraordinaire Vivenne Westwood, owes much to his colorful upbringing. So, he argues, do the other “famous children of the famous,” from Lily Allen (daughter of actor-musician Keith Allen) and Pixie and Peaches Geldof (daughters of musician Bob Geldof) to Kimberley Stewart, Alexandra and Theodora Richards, Stella McCartney, and Jade and Elizabeth Jagger (daughters of Rod, Keith, Paul, and Mick, respectively). This Thursday, Westwood will explore the relationship between this new generation of pop culture royalty and their roots in an exhibition entitled “Spawn:Bound” at London’s Bodhi Gallery.

“The children of ‘nostalgia’ celebrities have replaced the children of aristocracy in terms of their status and perceived cultural importance,” says a statement about the exhibition. “They are the new establishment. Their off-spring are the reproduction of that original fame, fame that still acts as a flagpost in the hill, but which has created a generation of children bound by their parent’s fame. Impossible to be free of. Forever entangled.” “Spawn:Bound" opens this Thursday, May 28.
EMILY GYBEN