Wanting to be a Hepburn
Audrey and Katharine Hepburn have been my inspiration for a long time. Both era defining, trailblazing, strong and powerful women.
Audrey Hepburn first came into my consciousness as a teenager, 13 year old me was blown away by the opening shots of Breakfast at Tiffany’s. The Givenchy dress, tiara, string of pearls and the 5th Avenue Tiffany store projected into my heart and never left. I devoured her films, documentaries and the books written about her. I own poster prints, coffee table books and even once had socks and a t-shirt with her face on it (someone once thought the face on the t-shirt was Natalie Wood and I shut that down rather quickly).
I found her star on the Hollywood walk of fame when I was in LA many years ago after much time and effort, I really want to travel to Switzerland to see her house ( although I fear this may be a step too far) and last year I went to the Tiffany exhibition at the Saatchi Gallery and swooned over the iconic black dress and the yellow diamond necklace she wore.
Her elegance, style and personality spoke to me and I even dressed up as Holly Golightly once for a teenage friend’s fancy dress birthday party (not sure if anyone else knew who I was but I was hyped wearing my black dress, velvet long gloves and fake pearls).
Her serene sense of self, poise and beauty made me want to run around Paris like her character Jo in Funny Face and to express myself just like she did when she danced in the jazz club in front of Fred Astaire. I wanted to experience a Roman Holiday with Gregory Peck and it started my love with all things Tiffany’s.
One of my favourite quotes comes from her, it encompasses the the way I feel about relationships, be it friends or family.
“The best thing to hold onto in life is each other”
Audrey Hepburn
Katharine Hepburn, sharp, urbane, aloof, angular and powerful. Sure of herself and her ability. She spoke fast, had cheekbones that could cut paper and had terrific chemistry with Spencer Tracy in all the films they made together. Her turn in Bringing up Baby is one of the finest screwball comedies you will ever see . I adored her in Desk Set and in Holiday with Cary Grant. Her role as Tracy Lord in The Philadelphia Story was a masterpiece and contains some of her best work and one of my favourite lines.
“My, she was yar...” Tracy Lord
She took no prisoners, had a gift for comedy and wore trousers in a time where female movie stars wore skirts and dresses. She took control of her career when many movie stars were at the behest of a studio after she was called box office poison and never looked back.
I felt compelled to write about them as I have been thinking a lot about what has shaped me and made me who I am. Audrey and Katharine definitely played a part in shaping me and how I saw myself in the world. Wanting to be elegant, yet gusty and determined but calm. They may have shared the same surname but they were both utterly unique and the combination of the two definitely permeated into me.
Although sometimes I do wonder if I created a perception of them based on the characters they played, as they both faced struggles throughout their lives. Like when you resonate with a character you see on screen or in book even though they are a creation of someone else.
I may of been drawing from a combination of the characters they played and their real life personas but they ultimately played a part in the spectrum of things that made me who I am.
Do you have any favourite icons or influences that you feel have shaped you? Is there a film or book that you’ve enjoyed and it resonates with you?