Meg Fletcher: Character Studies – 3 Acts is a new commission created to accompany Vivienne Westwood: Rebel – Storyteller – Visionary at The Bowes Museum. Northumberland‑based fashion and textile artist Meg Fletcher presents three large flags installed on the museum’s terrace, each reimagining founder Joséphine Bowes as a contemporary figure. Drawing on Bowes’s 19th‑century portrait and Westwood’s iconic designs, from Pirates (1981) and Mini‑Crini (1986) to Harris Tweed (1987/88) and Anglomania (1993/94)—Fletcher blends elements of costume history, theatricality and personal reinvention.

The commission explores how dress shapes identity and storytelling, celebrating both Joséphine Bowes and Vivienne Westwood as creative rule‑breakers with a shared spirit of experimentation. The display coincides with the reopening of the museum’s Founders Galleries, which highlight Joséphine achievements as an artist and cultural figure in 19th‑century Europe.