working with gays

You’ve collaborated with Alexander McQueen a lot but who are the gay men that have Inspired you the most ?

Wow... that’s a tricky question, let me think, because I don’t usually think of people in terms of gay or not gay so I haven’t really categorised it in my brain but I have worked with a lot of gay people. Let me think who...Matmos [the beat maestros on Vespertine] and right now, [fashion designer] Bernard Wilhelm is doing my tour collection. I’ve also worked a lot with [fashion designer] Jeremy Scott and M and M who do my album design work... Eminem ? [Laughing] No no no, M and M ! They’re called Michael and Mathis. And before I worked with Paul White, so there are a lot of people. But I sometimes know people for a while before I even what they are. l’m not the sort of person who knows immediately. I haven’t worked with Alexander McQueen for a while now. A lot of it has to do with the fact that I was in living in London at the time so I was meeting him and bumping into him and most work relationships you start off knowing people and afterwards something comes out of it. It’s not like you’re thinking "Oh we have to do something !" It sort of just happens and the place [figuratively speaking] where we met I don’t think was in a fashion or pop world but in a more theatrical world and we had a similar pagan interest and thing about the animal world : nature. l’m not so into the kind of posh, aristocratic side of fashion, like if you’ve got this much money you can get this outfit. And I wouldn’t describe me as chic [cracking up] - other words would probably come first ! So that’s where we meet – animals and a love of nature rather than showing the power structure over animals, like "I control you !" It’s not that ; it’s more celebratory. So I have that feeling for him ; I think he’s amazing.

Attitude - 12.05.2007