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Screen icon Katharine Hepburn's influential fashion displayed in New York

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Independent, beautiful and feisty, Katharine Hepburn was one of the most influential actresses of Hollywood's Golden Age.

Now nearing the 10th anniversary of her death, her iconic presence has been brought to life once more an an exhibition in New York.

Entitled Katharine Hepburn: Dressed for Stage and Screen, the exhibition charts the star's personal and in-persona fashion.

Katharine Hepburn

The Oscar-winning actress was famed for opting for khakis and shirts over the conventional skirts and dresses worn by so many women at the time.

Not afraid to express her opinion, Katharine is famed for the trademark line: "Anytime I hear a man say he prefers a woman in a skirt, I say, 'Try one. Try a skirt."

Katharine Hepburn

Although she may have preferred the more androgynous look off-screen, Katharine was a scurrilous collector of her effeminate stage costumes, with forty different outfits available to see at the New York Public Library for Performing Arts.

Showcasing ensembles from Guess Who's Coming To Dinner, Love Among The Ruins and State of The Union, curator Jean Druesedow is proud to display clothing of one of the most influential fashion icons of the 20th century.

She said: "The fact that she wore slacks and wanted to be comfortable influenced women's ready-to-wear in the United States."

She added: "That image said to the American woman 'Look you don't have to be in your girdle and stockings and tight dress. You can be comfortable. That was probably the first aspect of becoming a fashion icon."

The four-time Oscar winner starred in classics such as The Philadelphia Story, The African Queen and On Golden Pond. She died in 2003 aged 96.

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