A statement from Kate Moss
Jess Cartner-Morley
Thursday February 2, 2006
The Guardian
It is often said that Kate Moss makes a point of not speaking to the press. Are these people blind? True, she doesn't do doorstep press conferences, but then supermodels, like silent movie stars, know that a pout and a new hairstyle can be much more eloquent than a speech. A case in point: Moss's appearance as she arrived for her long-awaited audience with the Metropolitan police. For the occasion, Moss wore a pale trenchcoat over black trousers and a black scoop-neck sweater; her long blonde hair was held back by a wide black hairband, which matched her large dark glasses. The reference: 60s sex kitten number one, Marianne Faithfull.
This is a smart bit of brand alignment on Moss's part. Both women have famous images in the public mind relating to drugs busts. Moss's Mirror front page was a candid shot of her with a grubby rolled-up note wedged in one nostril, an accessory that not even Moss manages to imbue with any class or charm. Faithfull, meanwhile, was famously discovered naked, wrapped only in a fur rug, by policemen raiding a Rolling Stones party - an image that has lodged itself in the public consciousness despite not having been photographed. In referencing Faithfull - who, as it happens, is one of Moss's friends - the supermodel reminds us of a time when Swinging London had a little more mystique. Moss is doing what she can to sprinkle a little glamour over a sordid situation.
As in any good fashion picture, the hair and makeup are a crucial part of the story. The hairstyle (slightly bouffant, very blonde, behind the face-framing hairband) is very 60s; whip off the coat, add a strategically placed chair, and you've got Christine Keeler. It also echoes the image of the long-suffering June Carter, gold-hearted saviour of Johnny Cash, as portrayed by Reese Witherspoon in Walk the Line. Compare and contrast the subtlety of the Moss look with Victoria Beckham, whose idea of sartorial semiotics is a slogan T-shirt.
There is another 60s icon who matters in fashion right now. Princess Margaret's style as a young woman - in which smart coats, backcombed hair and a haughty attitude were crucial elements - has been much alluded to since October, when the hot British designer Christopher Bailey, creative director of Burberry, named her as his muse for the Spring 2006 collection. Burberry, for whom Moss shot several advertising campaigns, distanced themselves from Moss after the scandal, but have recently made sympathetic noises; if Moss could secure a new campaign for the label, her professional rehabilitation would be complete. In the light of this, I think we can conclude it is no coincidence that in the photographs in question, Moss is wearing a trenchcoat, a garment always associated with Burberry. Another set of photographs, then, is brought to mind: Moss in a Burberry trenchcoat, for last year's advertising campaign. This girl is good.
