Kate Moss
Medium: Graphite & Charcoal on paper – Duration: 550 hours – 55 x 58 cm – Year 2022
Story
Before Kate Moss became a supermodel and a symbol of beauty in the eyes of the fashion modelling industry, the standard of beauty was populated by models who were celebrated for their statuesque and glamorous portfolio.
Kate encountered several obstacles at the very start of her career with regards to getting work in the modelling industry. The hindrance Kate faced was mostly due to her height and physique. Her height (5’7) was considered too short for a model and her look (which became dubbed as “Heroin Chic”) wasn’t the popular standard of beauty in the “supermodel era” in late 1980s and early 1990s.
In 1993 Kate worked on a photo shoot for British Vogue with the late revolutionary photographer Corinne Day. The images of Kate challenged the traditional glamour and beauty standards in the 1980s and later became instrumental in creating a new era of fashion photography in the 1990s – pioneering the movement of “Grunge”.
“British. Cool.” is an auction by Bonhams auction house whereby they celebrate the best of British art and culture from the 1950s to present day.
It was an honour to be invited by Bonhams to take part in their 2022 British. Cool. auction. Creating a original portrait drawing of Kate Moss felt very fitting as she is a British cultural icon.
Over five thousand photographic images studied and countless video footages watched, I believed I had a sufficient amount of material to capture and Kate to depict her essence and beauty. I chose to work predominately on an image of Kate Moss taken by the esteemed photography duo Luigi & Iango.
The photograph they captured of Kate was for Vogue Hong Kong 2021. Her expression reflected a timeless natural beauty who rose to fame despite all the odds that were against her.
