Woollen Mermaids for the National Maritime Museum

Upon receiving the design brief for the woollen mermaids competition I was immediately excited. I had never heard of Annette Kellerman and so after completing further research was completely inspired by her courage and determination.


I have always been inspired by strong women throughout history who have broken through the boundaries of what society deemed appropriate for a woman. Annette Kellerman is no exception and I'm surprised that more is not spoken of her as a pioneer of the gender equality in the sporting and film industries. Certainly she was recognised for this in the United States but as usual, it seems Australia was slow on the uptake. Or maybe it was that dreaded Tall Poppy Syndrome so embedded in our Australian culture. In any event, I was dumbfounded that as a independent young woman I had never heard of her.

Perhaps what stood out to me most was the reporting of her allegedly being arrested in Boston for indecent exposure at the turn of last century. Wearing a men's style swim suit, which would have exposed her arms and legs, she opted for the sensible and practical style of a men's style bathing suit rather than the multitude of layers a woman was expected to wear when bathing. I think this is a fantastic story and it really inspired my initial creative idea's.

I have always been inspired by female designer's such as Elsa Schiaparelli and Coco Chanel. Women who pushed boundaries and changed the way women dressed and Annette Kellerman is no exception. This image of a swim suit by Schiaparelli has always been a favourite and I looked to her work again for some initial research.

There were many avenues to follow in terms of the creative path I could follow due to the fact that Annette Kellerman was involved in so many different things. Not only was she a swimmer and a diver but she was famous for dancing, acting and even has a star on the Hollywood walk of fame. he is thought to have been the founder of synchronised swimming and was the first woman to attempt to swim the English channel. Though unsuccessful, her desire to achieve a level of fitness and strength equal to that of a man paved the way for a new appreciation of the female form. It is this facet of her life, the promotion of health and fitness in women that most inspired me.

Along with using Anette Kellerman as my muse I was given some images with which to take inspiration from.

These images feature a photo from the 1930's and a contemporary image of a personal game consol and a city scape. At first I was a little unsure as to how to incorporate both the images. I really liked the idea of the Aussie lifesavers. I was immediately drawn to its cultural imagery and how it related so well to what I had learnt about Annette Kellerman.

I was unsure at this point how the other image was going to inspire me, but I knew some further research was needed before I could begin designing.