Amanda Lear had the label of a man who had undergone surgery. She fed her herself

Amanda Lear became famous not only for her beauty, but also for her links to some of the most important artists of the 20th century, such as Salvador Dalí or David Bowie. She developed from a modeling icon to a disco singer with an intellectual edge who stood out for her unique personality and the controversies that accompanied her.

Let’s turn Amanda Lear’s fame inside out and find out what the myths are about this eccentric truth artist.

Dalí’s muse for over 15 years

Amanda Lear first rose to prominence in the early 1960s through modeling. She started collaborating with famous designers, photographers and magazines. The fact that she walked the catwalks and graced the covers of magazines was actually caused by chance – she was approached by the head of a modeling agency on the street in Paris. Soon her steps were directed to London, where she moved and studied art school. She became a regular visitor to parties attended not only by rock stars. She knew Twiggy, John Lennon, Andy Warhol, Jimi Hendrix, dated a member of The Rolling Stones…

At that time, she was already known among artists and musicians as the muse of the surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. She maintained a close relationship with him for more than fifteen years. He became her spiritual father and inspired her in many ways, although Dalí claimed that real creative talent comes from male attributes. “No, women don’t have talent, it’s a male thing. A woman can paint pretty flowers, a bouquet or her children, but never a picture of any power. It’s a man’s thing, because talent is purely in the testicles,” Dalí told her, as she revealed in interview pro The Art Newspaper.

The start of a musical career and controversy

Amanda lost interest in the fashion industry within a few years. She found it boring, immoral and empty. In the 1970s, she therefore decided to leave it and focused on music. Partly thanks to the support of David Bowie, who encouraged her in her singing career. But only after she dazzled him with her androgynous looks, tall figure, masculine voice and accent. He even moved with Amanda and his wife Angie to a London flat, where the three of them lived. It was Bowie who introduced Amanda to people in the industry. She was thus on the way to success in the next field.

Especially in Europe, she soon became a disco icon thanks to the hits Follow Me or Queen of Chinatown. In 1972, she met musician Bryan Ferry from the rock band Roxy Music. They had a brief relationship, with Amanda’s photo in a skin-tight dress appearing on the cover of the group’s album, which was called For Your Pleasure.

Was she born a man?

In the lyrics, the singer often used double entenders and played with the listener. Although she denied rumors about her gender several times in the past, on the other hand, she liked to feed them. The tabloids speculated whether Amanda had been born a man, instigated in part by Dalí himself. According to Pope Express in turn, the media wrote about the fact that Amanda made a living in German and French cabarets as a drag queen under the pseudonym Peki D’Oslo. “The Greek ideal was Hermaphroditos, half Hermes, half Aphrodite, and the idea of ​​a woman with a man’s brain and vice versa was always very appealing. When I needed publicity and to launch my career, we used this ambiguity. It got people talking, got press coverage and a lot of record sales, which is what I wanted.” she admitted. When she married the art collector Alain-Philippe Malagnac in 1979, he told her she had to stop this publicity stunt and stop spinning this fairy tale.

Amanda spoke about the topic of identity in the lyrics of her songs, such as I’m a Mystery or Fabulous Lover, Love Me. Let’s recall, for example, the part of the text of the latter, in which he sings: “The surgeon made me so well that no one would say I was someone else.” According to The Guardian the singer stated in a 1976 interview, “Scandal is a good thing because of sensationalism. He sells records.” This lady and her team simply knew how to do music marketing.

The life of a painter in seclusion

The former model slowly left the musical waters and began to focus mainly on TV hosting, acting and painting. “Forget who I am, forget what I’ve done, just look at the pictures and say if it’s terrible or if you like it. But don’t buy a painting just because it’s by Amanda Lear.” she asked people who were interested in her art.

Now this lady lives in France and has several film and theater roles behind her. Her last studio record was released in 2021. She was portrayed by transgender model Andreja Pejić in the 2023 film Dalíland, which deals with the life of Salvador Dalí.

Exuberant life in London, relationship with famous men, confusion about gender and mysterious song lyrics – all these were tempting topics for the media, which became interested in the past of this ethereal blonde. how old is she Where was she born? Who are her parents? Journalists weren’t the only ones eager to find out. But so far they haven’t really succeeded. After all, on English version of Wikipedia you will immediately learn four possible years of birth and several cities where Amanda is said to have been born. Whether it was in 1939 in Saigon or 1950 in Hanoi, it doesn’t matter at all. As well as whether she underwent gender surgery at Dalí’s instigation. Amanda Lear is still an active renaissance artist who has inspired several legendary artists. In addition, four decades ago she was able to use the “mystery” surrounding her person in a way that some contemporary singers can only dream of.

In the future, when you see her music video or hear her voice on the radio, try to think of something other than a flat description like: “Is that the guy who got himself made into a woman?” Because she is the one who inspired me to write this article .