Scottish designer Pam Hogg, a key counterculture figure in 1980s London, has died, her family announced in a statement on Wednesday that paid tribute to “a glorious life lived and loved.”
“Pamela’s creative spirit and body of work touched the lives of many people of all ages and she leaves a magnificent legacy that will continue to inspire, bring joy and challenge us to live beyond the confines of convention,” said the statement. “Pamela will continue to live in our hearts and minds.”
Hogg was a true multi-hyphenate. She studied fine art and printed textiles at the Glasgow School of Art before earning a master’s at the Royal College of Art in London, and described herself on Instagram as: “Fashion designer / musician / filmmaker / mischief maker / Doctor of letters n broken hearts.”
Her early steps in fashion were inspired by the outré de facto dress code at London’s legendary Blitz Club, where she found herself in the same orbit as BodyMap’s Stevie Stewart, Stephen Jones and Leigh Bowery.
Hogg launched her first fashion collection, Psychedelic Jungle, in 1981, channeling the New Wave scene of the time. She sold her designs at the Hyper Hyper stall in London’s Kensington Market before being picked up by the likes of Harrods and Harvey Nichols, and opening her first standalone boutique off Carnaby Street in London’s Soho.
Her latex catsuits became her most famous signature, worn by everyone from Siouxsie Sioux and Debbie Harry to Kylie Minogue and Lady Gaga. But she was perhaps equally famous for her own trademark punk-futurist look.
Exhibits Examine the Subcultural Roots of London’s Fashion Creativity
In London, two exhibits pay homage to the raw, rebellious and deliriously inventive energy of the British capital’s creative underground, which trickles up to the catwalk like nowhere else.
