Jenny Kee
Encyclopedia
Jenny Kee is an Australian fashion designer. She was born in Bondi
to a Cantonese
father and a mother of partially Italian descent. Kee started her career in fashion in modelling, at one time featuring as the face of Canadian Airlines
advertisements. She was married to Australian artist Michael Ramsden
for 21 years.
In 1965 she moved to London and became involved in the Swinging London
and underground scene, where she sold ethnic and retro clothes, cast-off Dior
clothes, and Indian embroideries to a hippy clientele. While being interviewed for TV series Talking Heads, she claims that during her time in London, she had a brief sexual encounter with John Lennon
. She was involved with the filmmaker Philippe Mora
and starred in his film, Passion Play, shot in The Pheasantry (1967–68), playing Mary Magdalene
.
In 2006, she published her autobiography and account of her life in swinging London, A Big Life.
She features in a memoir by Richard Neville
, editor of the Australian satirical magazine Oz
, and is portrayed by Nina Liu
in the upcoming British film of the book, Hippie Hippie Shake. In 1972 she returned to Australia, and opened a fashion boutique, Flamingo Park. After opening, she was approached by fashion and textile designer Linda Jackson
. They formed a partnership to create bright and colourful pure Australian wool knitted jumpers with emblems. Among them are a knitted koala jumper that was owned by the then Lady Di
. The waratah
featured strongly in her work. Located in the Strand Arcade in Sydney's central business district, it closed in 1995. Since the death of her second husband, Kee has taken an interest in Tibetan Buddhism
.
Jenny Kee and her daughter are survivors of the Granville rail disaster.
Bondi, New South Wales
Bondi is an eastern suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Bondi is located seven kilometres east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Waverley Council. The postcode is 2026.-Location:...
to a Cantonese
Cantonese
Cantonese is a dialect spoken primarily in south China.Cantonese may also refer to:* Yue Chinese, the Chinese language that includes Cantonese* Cantonese cuisine, the cuisine of Guangdong province...
father and a mother of partially Italian descent. Kee started her career in fashion in modelling, at one time featuring as the face of Canadian Airlines
Canadian Airlines
Canadian Airlines International Ltd. was a Canadian airline that operated from 1987 until 2001. The airline was Canada's second largest airline after Air Canada, and carried more than 11.9 million passengers to over 160 destinations in 17 countries on five continents at its height in 1996...
advertisements. She was married to Australian artist Michael Ramsden
Michael Ramsden
Michael Ramsden was the lead singer with Hapshash and the Coloured Coat.He also played Jesus in the film Passion Play by Philippe Mora.-References:...
for 21 years.
In 1965 she moved to London and became involved in the Swinging London
Swinging London
Swinging London is a catch-all term applied to the fashion and cultural scene that flourished in London, in the 1960s.It was a youth-oriented phenomenon that emphasised the new and modern. It was a period of optimism and hedonism, and a cultural revolution. One catalyst was the recovery of the...
and underground scene, where she sold ethnic and retro clothes, cast-off Dior
Dior
Dior can mean:* Christian Dior SA, a French clothing retailer* In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional Middle-earth legendarium:**Dior Eluchíl, a Half-elven of the First Age**Dior , a Steward of GondorDior is a surname, and may refer to:...
clothes, and Indian embroideries to a hippy clientele. While being interviewed for TV series Talking Heads, she claims that during her time in London, she had a brief sexual encounter with John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
. She was involved with the filmmaker Philippe Mora
Philippe Mora
Philippe Mora is a French-born Australian film director. Born in 1949 to a German Jewish father and a French Jewish mother, he began making films while still a child.- Career :...
and starred in his film, Passion Play, shot in The Pheasantry (1967–68), playing Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene
Mary Magdalene was one of Jesus' most celebrated disciples, and the most important woman disciple in the movement of Jesus. Jesus cleansed her of "seven demons", conventionally interpreted as referring to complex illnesses...
.
In 2006, she published her autobiography and account of her life in swinging London, A Big Life.
She features in a memoir by Richard Neville
Richard Neville (writer)
Richard Neville is an Australian author and self-described "futurist", who came to fame as a co-editor of the counterculture magazine Oz in Australia and the United Kingdom in the 1960s and early 1970s...
, editor of the Australian satirical magazine Oz
Oz (magazine)
Oz was first published as a satirical humour magazine between 1963 and 1969 in Sydney, Australia and, in its second and better known incarnation, became a "psychedelic hippy" magazine from 1967 to 1973 in London...
, and is portrayed by Nina Liu
Nina Liu
Nina Liu is an Australian actress of Chinese descent. Her most prominent role was as Chloe in the television series, The Secret Life of Us...
in the upcoming British film of the book, Hippie Hippie Shake. In 1972 she returned to Australia, and opened a fashion boutique, Flamingo Park. After opening, she was approached by fashion and textile designer Linda Jackson
Linda Jackson (designer)
Linda Jackson is an Australian fashion designer, fashion retailer and artist. She was born in Melbourne, Australia. She studied fashion, design and photography in Melbourne, then travelled in the 1960s in Asia and Europe. She met designer Jenny Kee in 1972, with whom she established Flamingo Park,...
. They formed a partnership to create bright and colourful pure Australian wool knitted jumpers with emblems. Among them are a knitted koala jumper that was owned by the then Lady Di
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales, whom she married on 29 July 1981, and an international charity and fundraising figure, as well as a preeminent celebrity of the late 20th century...
. The waratah
Telopea speciosissima
Telopea speciosissima, commonly known as the New South Wales waratah or simply waratah, is a large shrub in the plant family Proteaceae. It is endemic to New South Wales in Australia and is the floral emblem of that state...
featured strongly in her work. Located in the Strand Arcade in Sydney's central business district, it closed in 1995. Since the death of her second husband, Kee has taken an interest in Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India . It is the state religion of Bhutan...
.
Jenny Kee and her daughter are survivors of the Granville rail disaster.