Lloyd Johnson : The Modern Outfitter

24 Jan-3 Mar 2012

Overview

Curated by Paul Gorman. This new exhibition celebrates the work of Lloyd Johnson, one of the central figures operating at the cross-hatches of popular music and British fashion design and includes garments, textiles, artwork and ephemera from Johnson's own archive and from fans and collectors from around the world. THE MODERN OUTFITTER opens the door on a pre-digital world of shopping, retailing, production and design, one where Johnson’s boutiques became total environments which also told his own story, from Modernist beginnings in the seaside town of Hastings through hippy splendour in London and Paris in the 60s to new wave, post-punk and New Romanticism in the 70s and 80s to LA’s Tiki/lounge scene and Tokyo’s leather-clad rockers of the 90s and 00s. Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, Rod Stewart, Sex Pistols, The Clash, Keith Richards, Chrissie Hynde, The Specials, George Michael, Jack Nicholson, Kid Creole, Fred Astaire...the list of Johnson’s fans and customers is as breathtaking as the career of this much-treasured design exemplar.