One of Katya Saunders’s final wishes before her death in 2019 was to donate her possessions to a non-profit organisation, a generous offer Joe Grima from the Malta LGBTIQ Rights Movement thought it should be able to handle with ease.

However, what Grima assumed would be a handful of precious mementoes turned out to be mountains of boxes filled to the brim with iconic photography, handwritten notes, one-of-a-kind couture and lavish amounts of designer shoes.

These relics of a lifetime of achievements are what ultimately sent Grima and author Ramona Depares down the rabbit hole of Katya’s life, not just the opulent displays of beauty but the quiet acts of kindness that left an impact on the lives of people around her.

Katya at Little Venice, London, in 1989. Photo: Mark Ezra

From appearing in Vogue on the arm of Karl Lagerfeld, modelling for iconic photographers like Peter Beard and cultivating intimate friendships with celebrities like David Bowie, Katya made waves, not just through her illustrious career, but as one of the first openly trans women in Malta.

Now, a new book and accompanying exhibition at Spazju Kreattiv aims to shed more light on the woman behind the larger-than-life persona.

When meeting some of Katya’s friends, Grima was struck by the fact that, rather than talking about her appearance or career, her friends emotionally shared stories of the things she did for her community.

“I would say that Katya was an activist, just not in the generic sense,” Grima said.

“Rather than talking about LGBT rights or improving legislation, she went a step beyond that and actually supported people.

Katya outside the photographer's flat in Holland. Photo: Mark Ezra

“She would grab people from the street or whom she met in bars and tell them ‘Isma, if you have nowhere to go you can stay at my flat’ and from there it became a mentorship exercise.

“Some of these people were interested in beauty and fashion and she really put in a lot of work to help them style their brands." Depares also discovered that she actually networked for them, purposely inviting different people to the same parties with the intention of linking them together.

“These are brands which today have become quite renowned, like Charles and Ron or Mugi,” she said.

Having met Katya at the City of London, a bar the model considered her veritable second home, Depares said that the chance encounter with her put the model’s career on her radar.

“She lived and behaved like a star and people reacted to that,” Depares said.

Katya in her element. Photo courtesy of MGRM

The enigma of Katya remained with Depares even after her death, and when the opportunity to serve as her biographer came, she snapped up the chance to speak to Katya’s nearest and dearest, as well as to dig into the darker parts of the model’s life and the difficulties she faced as a trans woman in the 70s.

“Many of the people I interviewed described at length the ways in which Katya helped shape their lives and the way she helped them not only come to terms with their identity but also to become the best version of themselves and flourish,” Depares said.

“Many credited their careers to her and said if they hadn’t met her, their lives might have taken a very different turn and probably not for the best.”

Depares nonetheless got to flex her journalistic prowess in uncovering the truth in some of the myths surrounding Katya’s persona, detailed in the book, Katya – Easy on the Tonic, a title derived from her de facto catchphrase.

"Katya’s life is a study of resilience and determination"

Depares said she pulled on strings to investigate a number of stories, including a Hollywood producer who credits Katya with his career, a mysterious photoshoot that may have included Bianca Jagger and getting to the bottom of whether Katya managed to get married to a man, despite there being no legal recognition of her gender at the time.

However, behind the glamour, there were other facets to Katya that reveal more complicated elements of her life, with both Depares and Grima in agreement that the biography should not sanitise some of her darker realities.

“Katya had a multifaceted personality. She was by no means perfect and she faced challenges and demons and we do make it a point to portray this honestly,” Depares said.

“This isn’t just an attempt to portray the glamour, we felt it was important for people who view her story as inspirational, to see the whole package and read it in the context of the time that she lived in.”

Katya soaking in the sun. Photo courtesy of MGRM

Grima reiterates that there were some difficult conversations to be had about Katya.

“We didn’t want to portray the persona of Katya as one that unrealistically inspires other young trans women,” he said.

“As some may know, Katya faced difficulties with addiction, housing problems and mental health and when you met Katya that was the full package that you got.

“What she did was sensational but nowadays a young woman in 2022 doesn’t need to go to the lengths that Katya did to achieve what she achieved.

“Katya’s life is a study of resilience and determination honestly because if you look at the situation on the face of it, Katya should not have been able to do what she did. And yet somehow, she did it,” Depares chimes in.

Slide for more. Photo courtesy of MGRM

Slide for more. Photo courtesy of MGRM

Slide for more. Photo courtesy of MGRM

Slide for more. Photo courtesy of MGRM

Slide for more. Photo courtesy of MGRM

Photo courtesy of MGRM

Katya – Easy on the Tonic has been published by MGRM and funded through the Voluntary Organisations Project Scheme managed by the Malta Council for the Voluntary Sector. A complementary exhibition is running at Spazju Kreattiv until January 22.