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ILLIAM KLEIN IS NOT
a dedicated follower of fashion, although
fashion has often followed him. He is not a
royalist, but nor is he a republican. He is an
American who lives in France, a photographer
who makes fi lms, an 84-year-old with attitude.
He may be a hard man to pin down but he’s an
easy one to talk to – or he will be, when he
shows up. I’ve been wandering around his
gorgeous living room for two hours now. I’m
not bored: there’s a maquette of the rooms at
Tate Modern where his show will take place
this winter, a library’s worth of books, a great
photograph of him during last year’s Royal
Wedding, snapping a policeman reading the
Evening Standard, the happy couple and cheesy
headline ‘Sealed with a Kiss’ clearly visible.
Th e walls are packed with paintings by
Klein’s wife, Jeanne Florin, who died in 2005,
and the couch piled high with paperwork.
And there are the full-length windows
overlooking the Jardin du
Luxembourg and its palace, built
in the 17th century for Marie de
Médicis, widow of King Henri IV,
art-lover and arch-meddler in
politics. Whatever he thinks of
royalty, Klein has them to thank
for a great view.
‘I don’t understand the
monarchy,’ Klein tells me when he
Previous page: metal
dresses from Who Are You,
Polly Maggoo?, 1965.
Right: Antonia + Mirrors,
Paris, 1963.
Below: William Klein
back in the day
eventually appears and I ask him about last
year’s jaunt to London. ‘I went to photograph
street parties: I like these events. I went to
Hyde Park, where there was a tremendous
screen and 250,000 people and they all had
their picnics, and they were very generous, they
all off ered me things to eat… Th at was kind of
fun. But I don’t understand how you people
stand having a queen with 45 castles and a
yacht.’ Th is sally makes up in power what it
lacks in precision: actually, Her Majesty has
seven residences and the yacht has been
decommissioned. Still, the comment is
delivered with the grace and economy of a
good right hook: no wonder he became
interested in boxing.
Forty-Four
PHOTO©GETTY