Here are some questions I battle with every day: is fashion art? Do clothes matter? Should women shop in Primark even in a recession? Who, if I ever get married again, would I pick to design my evening Dresses?
In a quiet backstage room at a preview of a new exhibition — Valentino: Master Of Couture — at Somerset House, London, I attempt to get some answers.
The designer Valentino Garavani, born in 1932, is sat before me in an impeccable grey suit and crocodile loafers so shiny you can check your lipstick in them.