FASHION

Byronesque Puts Punk Center Stage

Punk may be quite literally in Vogue right now, but for Gill Linton, founder of the high-end vintage retail site Byronesque.com, it’s a culturally significant movement long worthy of the spotlight.


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Punk may be quite literally in Vogue right now, but for Gill Linton, founder of the high-end vintage retail site Byronesque.com, it’s a culturally significant movement long worthy of the spotlight. And let’s not leave out the Teddys and Mods, Skinheads and New Romantics, all of which inform her approach. “Whether on or offline, vintage stores tend to be so kitschy and unsophisticated,” says Linton. “Byronesque is about elevating the experience.” Tapping into a network of acclaimed vintage boutiques like London’s One of A Kind, Paris’s Quidam de Revel, and New York’s now defunct The New World Order, the site offers covetable pieces like an Azzedine Alaia motorcycle dress from the late ’80s, a black velvet Thierry Mugler bra top and matching pencil skirt, as well as re-issues of Malcolm McClaren and Vivienne Westwood’s “Tits” tee (above), famously worn by Siouxsie Sioux. Byronesque also features thought-provoking editorials to put these clothes and accessories into context, such as a story on scars by the artist Jake Chapman and a video interview with Nenah Cherry on Ari Up’s singular style. “Right now the dominant culture is fast,” says Linton. “I wanted to create something that inspired.”

Photo: courtesy of Byronesque