Catherine Martin (b.1965), designer, began working with her future husband, director Baz Luhrmann, while both were students at NIDA. Early in their careers the pair collaborated on stage productions, including an embryonic version of Strictly Ballroom and an acclaimed La Bohème for the Australian Opera. For the film version of Strictly Ballroom (1992) Martin won AFI and BAFTA awards for production design and (with Angus Strathie) costumes. Romeo + Juliet (1996) brought her another BAFTA, and an Oscar nomination for art design. For Moulin Rouge (2001) she won two Oscars, one for art direction and – again with Angus Strathie – one for costume design, and also gleaned the Los Angeles Film Critics’ Association award for Best Production Design. Eight years later she was nominated for the costume Oscar again, for Australia. In 2004 she worked with Karl Lagerfeld to devise the film advertisement for perfume Chanel No. 5, which starred Nicole Kidman. In 2014 she won Oscars for Best Costume and Best Production design for Luhrmann’s The Great Gatsby, taking her Academy Award tally to an Australian record four.
Canadian-born photographer Douglas Kirkland has photographed hundreds of film stars and crew, including Judy Garland, Natalie Wood and, notably, Marilyn Monroe.
Gift of the artist 2006
© Douglas Kirkland
Douglas Kirkland (1 portrait)
On one level The Companion talks about the most famous and frontline Australians, but on another it tells us about ourselves.
Featuring striking photographic portraits of contemporary figures from the National Portrait Gallery collection, The Look is an aesthetic treat with a lashing of je ne sais quoi.
Visit us, learn with us, support us or work with us! Here’s a range of information about planning your visit, our history and more!
