Episode 13: Conversation with Jenny Kee and Linda Jackson. Thank you to the Powerhouse Museum for giving us permission to publish this audience recording at this free event. 1 hour 16 minutes audio time.
Jenny Kee and Linda Jackson: Step Into Paradise is the first in-depth survey that captures the dynamic energy of Linda and Jenny’s creative partnership. It draws on more than four decades of one of the most influential pairings in the history of Australian fashion, examining the influences, inspirations and the compelling stories behind their work.
Honoured as Officers in the Order of Australia for their contributions to Australia’s fashion industry, Jenny Kee and Linda Jackson transformed the nation’s fashion and cultural heritage with their pioneering style inspired by Australia’s cultural and natural landscape, melded with their global influences.
The exhibition begins with their creative partnership in the 1970s at the Flamingo Park Frock Salon at Sydney’s Strand arcade and the sensational Flamingo Follies fashion parades, branching into their distinctive individual careers through to recent years including Jenny’s costume designs for the Sydney Olympic Games and their collaborations with Australian designers Romance Was Born.
Over 150 garments, textiles, photographs and artworks, many unseen, from the Museum’s own extensive collection are brought together with the designers’ personal archives. Highlight pieces on display include artwork from the pair and archival behind the scenes photographs, Jenny Kee’s black opal Chanel suit from Karl Lagerfeld’s first collection in 1983 and Linda Jackson’s iconic Waratah dress.
