While Lieve Van Gorp’s work has not yet had the cultural renaissance of some of her ‘90s Belgium counterparts, she remains a fascinating figure within the country’s rich history of iconoclastic designers. Her work was seeped in gothic, rock ‘n’ roll-influenced subversion, yet her leather tops and tapered trousers simultaneously read as a stirring rebuke of Catholicism — a recurring motif for several Belgian designers of the era, including Raf Simons, whose work was largely a response to his Catholic father and Catholic school upbringing. Van Gorp’s career lasted not even decade; she walked away from her eponymous label in 2001 to take a job curating for MoMu, imbuing it with an air of mystery not unlike a musician who released but a sole album. The sparse work and stray runway images her label carries on capture a stirring and sophisticated interpretation of youthful rebellion.

This vest comes from her fall 1998 collection, whose title took the form of a question: “Victim or Hero?” It’s made with a butter-soft lamb leather, and thin curved zip. Gratuitous straight line darting similar to what Hedi Slimane would later use at Dior Homme is employed to give it an ultra-slim fit through the body, taking the narrow shape that was, at the time, popular throughout Antwerp’s designers.

Tagged size: 48

Pit to pit: 18in

Length: 21.5in