News And Projects
More Will Be No More - AW23/24 Window Display
11/10/2023 — Vivienne Westwood
This season, we have dedicated the festive window displays of our flagship boutiques to showcase artwork by Piper Revere - an East London based artist, who is autistic and profoundly deaf. Piper’s notes reveal a sincerity that speaks to the human experience. ‘I draw from my imagination,’ she offers, inviting us into her private world. With both humour and compassion, her expressive artworks allude to themes of love, death, dating and break-ups, developed through her unique graphic style. As we feature her ‘More Will Be No More’ slogan on our window displays – a phrase that is itself open to interpretation – Piper’s words become a catalyst for connection.
‘I just think she has this magical sixth sense of connecting to people,’ explains her mother, Kate Revere, ‘and that is beautiful’. Like many other parents of disabled children, Kate was concerned about what Piper would do once she leaves education. Finding opportunities to be limiting, she made this her founding principle when creating ‘Revere the Residence’ - a social enterprise working with Neuro divergent artists. Revere works with Mencap, colleges, community groups and local authorities, to help give opportunities to as many people with disabilities as possible - ‘not for pity or praise’ but rather to level the field.
Only 5% of people with a learning disability are in employment in the UK. On the inception of the enterprise, Kate recalls, ‘Revere the Residence started just after the Lockdown. It really just drops off the edge of a cliff for these young adults who are brilliant and talented. I wanted to create an environment where they could feel safe, feel inspired, have fun at work – because that’s what we all want to do’. By meeting Piper's needs, whilst responding to the ethics at the heart of the community they live in - Revere’s homeware and lifestyle shop is a space where people can spend their money wisely on unique products, while supporting their community.
For our window displays, the use of Piper’s 'More Will Be No More’ piece is itself ambiguous – is it anti-capitalist? Anti-consumerist, at Christmas against all the excess and waste? Is it apocalyptic? Or a slogan for peace? The original artwork comes from a note written by Piper, depicting an argument between her and her fictional boyfriend; an evocation of the artist’s internal world. ‘Piper’s notes have beautiful meanings to her,’ explains Kate. ‘But when they’re given to me, I take a different meaning. Everybody interprets them in different ways.’ This is the beauty of Piper’s notes. They hold an intimate nature – with a potential to resonate with us all.
Find Piper’s artwork across the festive window displays of our boutiques in the UK, Paris, Milan, New York, LA, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai.
For more information about Revere the Residence, and to explore their selection of unique art pieces (to purchase in time for the festive season) visit: www.reveretheresidence.com
#NotesByPiper