Elle UK - 04.2020

K AT H A R INE H A MNE T T

Interview: Lena de Casparis.

ELLE.COM/UK April 2020

Elle FINAL WORD

My fashi o n able life

THE DESIGN VETERAN, 72, ON BOARDING SCHOOL ST YLE, MEETING NELSON MANDEL A AND

WHY SHE WISHES SHE’D CHOSEN A LIFE OUTSIDE OF FASHION

I REMEMBER FIGHTING WITH MY MOTHER ABOUT WHAT

I WORE. When I was four I wanted to wear one dress all the time.

It was a blue and white checked smock with a twee velvet collar that

she’d probably made. I used to fish it out of the wash and put it on wet.

WE MOVED TO FR ANCE WHEN I WAS FIVE. It was the

195Os, so of course French Vogue was on the table the whole time

and we were surrounded by fabulously chic French women. By

default, it gave me an extraordinary fashion education.

BOARDING SCHOOL TAUGHT ME TO LOVE UNIFORMS.

I was there for 1O years and I still often dress in a uniform: I have six

identical jumpers and five pairs of trousers, all black. It sounds boring,

but it depends on the shape of the piece. It gives my mind space to be

creative – get over it, you look fine, it’s what you do that’s important.

I HAVE BEEN MAKING MY OWN CLOTHES SINCE I WAS 12.

I was the only person doing needlework in my physics and chemistry

classes. When I was young, I made sexy things. The kind of things

my mother wouldn’t allow me to wear: tight, straight skirt numbers.

THERE’S NO ROOM FOR EGO WHEN IT’S YOUR BUSINESS.

Your clothes have to sell. When I set up Katharine Hamnett London,

as well as designing, I was in charge of marketing and advertising

• even debt collecting. We had to make a profit from day one or we
  were dead. I had to go to the shops that hadn’t paid their invoices
  and hurl furniture. And when a collection didn’t sell, I’d think,
  Oh my god, I’ve f*cked up here, and go back to the drawing board.

IF YOU CAN MAKE A STAND, YOU HAVE AN OBLIGATION

TO MAKE ONE. When I wore the T-shirt [saying ‘58% Don’t Want

Pershing’ in reference to the US Army’s controversial Pershing II

guided missile being deployed in West Germany] to meet Margaret

Thatcher, it was totally appropriate. Things need to be protested.

I’VE ENJOYED GET TING OLDER. You no longer spend two

hours changing out of 2O outfits like when you’re a teenager. You

know what feels right, you put it on and then you can forget about it.

THE MOST STYLISH MAN I’VE MET WAS NELSON

MANDEL A. His shirts were hysterical, very Versace. My friend made

an ad with him for Telecom Italia and invited me to Johannesburg to

meet him. Years afterward, at an NGO meeting in West Africa, I put

my hand on the table and asked, ‘Who wants to shake the hand that

shook Mandela’s?’ The table was covered in arms, it was beautiful.

I’VE GOT A DOG WI TH A TASTE FOR SHOES. He’s called

Arthur and he loves calf leather, Isabel Marant and Jimmy Choo. Even

Converse. It’s really annoying, I’ve lost many great pairs of shoes.

CHOOSING FASHION AS A JOB WAS A MA JOR MISTAKE.

Every single process comes at an appalling price for the planet.

My first dream was to become a film director, I should have done that.

WHEN I DIE, I PL AN TO BE SERVED ON A PL AT TER TO

TIGERS. I don’t want to be buried and the poor tigers at the zoo look

hungry. I won’t need clothes for that – freedom from fashion at last.

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