Kylie Minogue AO OBE (b. 1968), the 'Princess of Pop', is Australia's most successful female recording artist of all time and the first woman to have a UK number one album across five consecutive decades. Minogue rose to local and international fame playing Charlene in the television soap Neighbours in the 1980s. Her singing career began with a cover of the 1960s song 'The Loco-Motion' in 1987 and she made history by achieving more than twenty consecutive top ten hits in the UK. With an instinct for re-invention, she has been involved in unexpected collaborations, such as with Nick Cave on 'Where the Wild Roses Grow' (1995). In 2002 Minogue won four ARIA awards for the album Fever (2001) containing her aptly-named biggest hit, 'Can't Get You Out of My Head'. Diagnosed with breast cancer in 2005, she became a prominent survivor, her ordeal inspiring hope in many women. Since her recovery, Minogue has continued a regular schedule of releasing music and touring, with highlights including performing at Queen Elizabeth II’s Diamond Jubilee Concert in 2012 and appearing in the Legends Slot at the 2019 Glastonbury Festival. Her fifteenth studio album, Disco (2020), reached number one in Australia and the UK.
Matthew Sleeth took this image of Minogue in East Timor in December 1999 when she performed with a range of Australian musicians in 'Tour of Duty: Concert for the Troops', which was broadcast on Australian television.
Gift of Patrick Corrigan AM 2010. Donated through the Australian Government's Cultural Gifts Program.
© Matthew Sleeth
Patrick Corrigan AM (130 portraits)
On one level The Companion talks about the most famous and frontline Australians, but on another it tells us about ourselves.
Portraits of philanthropists in the collection honour their contributions to Australia and acknowledge their support of the National Portrait Gallery.
The photographs from Matthew Sleeth's tour of duty series look more like advertisements than images of war.
