November 17, 2015

I ♥ Your Style: Florence Arthaud

Screen Shot 2015-11-17 at 12.31.22I was looking at my friend Didier Malige’s instagram earlier in the year and I noticed a photograph he posted mourning the tragic loss of Florence Arthaud, the french sailor who, among her many accomplishments, broke a world record in 1990 as the first woman to sail solo across the Atlantic. At first it was her most excellent tomboy style, her athletic body and her natural beauty that caught my eye. But as I sought to learn more about her, her character and female pride impressed me equally.

VOILE - 1986 arthaud (florence) - (fra) - fonds n/b April 1979, France --- French sailor Florence Arthaud during preparations for the Double Transat boat race, abord the boat Biotherm at the Port Camargue. | Location: Port Camargue, France. --- Image by © Henri Bureau/Sygma/Corbis arthaud

After her epic trans-atlantic crossing a reporter said to her, “Florence, you’re a real man” to which she confidently responded, “I don’t feel like a man at all. I’m sure I am more delicate in my navigating, more sensitive. I think women project in me their desire for liberty. I have always sailed in order to be free, to feel completely free; on the sea I am totally independent, alone.”

04 Dec 1982, Pointe-a-Pitre, Grande-Terre, Guadeloupe --- French sailor Florence Arthaud aboard the Biotherm II during the 1982 Route du Rhum boat race. --- Image by © Jean Guichard/Sygma/Corbis

 

December 1982, Guadeloupe --- French saillor Florence Arthaud cruising aboard the Biotherm II in Guadeloupe. --- Image by © Jean Guichard/Sygma/Corbis

What a cool lady.

Florence-Arthaud

Comments

6 Responses to “I ♥ Your Style: Florence Arthaud”

  1. Veromall

    Hey Amanda, I tried the new version of your site on several computers (all in IE, Windows 8) and it was broken each time: the photos aren’t showing. I could send you a screen shot by mail, if you want to view the issue.