Bonington Gallery celebrates the renegade spirit of Nottingham's 1980s fashion scene in a new exhibition
Bonington Gallery is bringing the vibrant and rebellious spirit of Nottingham's 1980s independent fashion scene to life with a new exhibition ‘Nottingham Subcultural Fashion in the 1980s’. Featuring a selection of garments, fashion magazines, photos and archive material from the period, the exhibition will celebrate the talent, creativity and influence of the city’s designers.
By Sarah McLeod | Published on 18 February 2025
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Featuring a selection of garments, fashion magazines, photos and archive material from the period, the exhibition will celebrate the talent, creativity and influence of the city’s designers.
As part of the exhibition, Bonington Gallery has launched an open call for any material, photos, magazines and
garments relating to Nottingham’s fashion scene in the 1980s. Materials will directly contribute to the exhibition.
The contributions will initially form an evolving noticeboard in the exhibition and if permitted become part of an archive that aims to preserve and highlight a pivotal moment in the city’s cultural history.
In the wake of Beeston-born Sir Paul Smith’s rise from a modest Byard Lane store in 1974 to international acclaim in London, Paris, and Tokyo, Nottingham became a hub for young talent. Many of these up-and-coming designers were graduates of ‘Trent Poly’ (now Nottingham Trent University), including the distinctive brands G-Force, Olto (now One BC), Cocky’s Shed, and Vaughan & Franks.
Fuelled by raw talent, a DIY ethos, and affordable rents, these brands broke away from the mainstream, opening shops, creating collections, and fostering a creative network. During this time Nottingham even had its own alternative style magazines, Despatch, Relay and Débris, offering everything from fashion shoots with local and international designers and vibrant photo montages of nights out at The Garage to insider guides on the city’s offbeat shops. Designers including Olto and G-Force had their own shops, G-Force’s Hockley shop with its distinctive sculptural front was featured in World of Interiors magazine.
Each brand had its own distinct vision. Vaughan & Franks psychedelic patched jeans and embroidered shirts were worn by members of legendary 80s pop acts Dead or Alive and ABC – and their designs are currently featured in the exhibition Outlaws: Fashion Renegades of 80s London at The Fashion & Textile Museum. The avant-garde designers Olto had a shop on Mansfield Road and built their collections around cult films such as ‘A Clockwork Orange’. The athletic style clubwear brand Cocky’s Shed become the go-to wear for clubbing nights out in the city and beyond.
ABC wearing Vaughan & Franks.
G-Force began life as 1950s inspired menswear, described in The Face as ‘glorified rockabilly’, before developing into a utilitarian streetwear brand in the late 1980s. The brand’s international reputation grew over the decades and by the 1990s, their clothes were regularly worn by musicians and celebrities including Stereo MCs and Cher. 30 years ago Eric Cantona was photographed in a G-Force knitted jacket the day after his infamous ‘kung-fu kick’ incident.
Though large-scale production ceased by the 2000s, these brands continue to be recognised and admired, and garments are highly sought after on the vintage market. G-Force has recently reintroduced limited edition pieces based on archival designs, while Vaughan & Franks continue to create one-off custom garments. Olto evolved into One BC and still produce innovative bespoke garments in their studio at Sneinton Market.
Accompanying the exhibition will be a collection of specially commissioned essays by Ian Trowell, who has also provided curatorial consultancy and research to this project. Ian writes on subjects including UK subcultures, music, fashion, popular culture, art and media. His book Throbbing Gristle: An Endless Discontent was published by Intellect Books in 2023.
This exhibition has been co-curated by Tom Godfrey, Director, Bonington Gallery and Dr Katherine Townsend, a researcher, educator, practitioner and Professor in Fashion and Textile Practice in the Fashion, Textiles and Knitwear department in the School of Art and Design at Nottingham Trent University.
Bonington Vitrines #27
- Nottingham Subcultural Fashion in the 1980s
- Sat 22 March 2025 - Sat 10 May 2025
- Preview show: Fri 21 March 6.00 - 8.00 pm
Notes for Editors
Press enquiries please contact Sarah McLeod, Corporate Communications Manager, on telephone +44 (0)115 848 8735, or via email.
About Bonington Gallery
Founded in 1969, Bonington Gallery has been at the forefront of Nottingham’s rich and vibrant visual arts community for over fifty years, offering an innovative and dynamic programme of local, national, and international significance. Situated at the heart of Nottingham Trent University’s School of Art & Design, our ‘art school’ context is reflected throughout our multi-disciplinary programme of exhibitions and events – presenting and exploring practices related to visual art, fashion, film, music and design. Beyond our building, our connections with colleagues in academic subject areas help ground our programme and thinking within past, present and future cultural and societal discourse
Website: https://www.boningtongallery.co.uk/
Facebook: @boningtongallery
Instagram: @boningtongallery
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About Nottingham Trent University
Nottingham Trent University (NTU) has been named UK ‘University of the Year’ five times in six years, (Times Higher Education Awards 2017, The Guardian University Awards 2019, The Times and Sunday Times 2018 and 2023, Whatuni Student Choice Awards 2023) and is consistently one of the top performing modern universities in the UK.
It is the 3rd best modern university in the UK (The Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2023). Students have voted NTU 1st in the UK for student employability (Uni Compare 2025)
NTU is the 5th largest UK institution by student numbers, with over 40,000 students and more than 4,400 staff located across six campuses. It has an international student population of almost 7,000 and an NTU community representing over 160 countries.
NTU owns two Queen’s Anniversary Prizes for outstanding achievements in research (2015, 2021). The first recognises NTU’s research on the safety and security of global citizens. The second was awarded for research in science, engineering, arts and humanities to investigate and restore cultural objects, buildings and heritage. The Research Excellence Framework (2021) classed 83% of NTU’s research activity as either world-leading or internationally excellent.
NTU was awarded GOLD in the national 2023 Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) assessment, as it was in 2019.
NTU is a top 10 for sport (British Universities and Colleges Sport league table 2023).
NTU is the most environmentally sustainable university in the UK and second in the world (UI Green Metric University World Rankings, 2023).