This ensemble consists of a slip, overdress , jacket and shoes. The slip and over dress made of orange silk crepe and the fitted jacket made of silk were designed by Collette Dinnigan of Sydney. The high platform wedge sandals were designed by Sergio Rossi, Italy. Catherine Martin wore the ensemble to the wedding of Sarah O'Hare and Lachlan Murdoch in 1999. It is part of a collection of Australian and international designer clothing, shoes and bags from the personal wardrobe of Catherine Martin.

Catherine Martin is one of Australia's outstanding creative talents, working as a production designer, film producer and costume designer on significant film, theatre and event productions including Strictly Ballroom, Moulin Rouge, Romeo + Juliet, La Bohème and Australia. Martin's creative collaboration with husband Baz Luhrmann has produced a visually lush, musically exhilarating, poetic style of storytelling.

Her personal wardrobe reflects Martin's romantic style, knowledge of fashion history and passion for handcrafted, artisanal textiles; an aesthetic that is also a key part of her designs for film, theatre, interior design and fashion. The collection includes outfits Martin wore to premiers and award nights including the evening dress she wore to the 74th Academy Awards where she received two Academy Awards for Best Costume Design and Best Art Direction.

Catherine Martin's personal wardrobe enhances the Museum's contemporary fashion and dress collection with significant examples of work from Australian and international designer labels including Easton Pearson, Collette Dinnigan, Willow, Akira Isogawa, Chanel, Mui Mui, Jill Sander, Comme des Garçons and Prada.

In addition the Catherine Martin collection includes a group of costumes and accessories from the films Romeo + Juliet (1996) and Australia (2008), set models from the film Australia (2008) and costumes and accessories from the theatre production of Puccini's opera La Boheme (2003). A key feature of these productions is the costuming and sets which reflect the extensive research and inventive interpretation of references drawn from across history and cultures. These costumes enhance the Museum's existing collection of costumes for the Baz Luhrmann films Strictly Ballroom (1992) (92/1900-92/1939) and Moulin Rouge! (2001) (2008/199/1-17).

This collection reflects the diverse approaches Martin and her team take in costuming film and theatre productions. In Romeo + Juliet, Leonardo DiCaprio's Romeo wears an off the shelf Prada shirt that has been skilfully distressed to appear dirty and bloodied, while his companions the Montague boys appear in colourful screen printed and hand painted Hawaiian shirts. The Australia costumes reflect the design and production teams' careful research into 1930s and 1940s clothing which they have skilfully re-interpreted and reproduced for the film. In contrast the costumes for the four key characters from La Bohème are an eclectic mix of contemporary mass market work wear, designer labels and newly created garments.

- Glynis Jones, Curator, Fashion and Dress, December 2010

The fabric of the over dress was made in India.
The fabric of the slip and the lining of the jacket was made in China.
The fabric of the jacket was made in Italy.

This ensemble was worn by Catherine Martin to Sarah O'Hare and Lachlan Murdoch's wedding in the Yass Valley, NSW, in 1999. It was purchased by Catherine Martin from Collette Dinnigan's boutique in Paddington, Sydney. The shoes were purchased from Cosmopolitan Shoes in Double Bay, Sydney.

Catherine Martin was born in Sydney in 1965. She completed a Diploma Design course at the National Institute of Dramatic Arts in Sydney. It was here that she met and started working on projects with her future husband and creative partner Baz Luhrmann (b 1962).

Martin's first design project with Luhrmann was his experimental opera entitled Lake Lost devised for the Australian Opera in 1987, for which she and her co-designer Angus Strathie won a Victorian Green Room Award for Best Design. She has designed all of Luhrmann's subsequent productions including Strictly Ballroom (1992), Romeo + Juliet (1996) for which she received an Academy Award nomination for Best Art Direction, A Midsummer Night's Dream (various season's 1993, 1994, 1996, 2000, 2003) Moulin Rouge (2001) for which Martin won Academy Awards for Best Costume Design and best Production Design, La Bohème (various productions, 1990, 1993, 1996, 2002, 2003, 2004) and Australia (2008).

Catherine Martin and Baz Luhrmann married in 1997 and in the same year co-founded their film, theatre and entertainment production company Bazmark Inc and its subsidiaries Bazmark Live and Bazmark Music.

Ensemble comprising dress, slip, jacket and shoes. Overdress is of orange and cream printed silk crepe embellished with embroidered trailing design in blue trimmed with bugle beads and sequins. Band around hem features paisley print silk crepe embellished with seed beads and edged in band of blue sequins. The neckline is square with spaghetti straps made of blue sequins. Neckline is edged with a band of blue sequins.

Slip is bias cut, has a deep v neck, spaghetti straps and is composed of orange crepe silk.

Green cotton/acetate jacket is fitted with gold polyester floral motif. Has a v neckline, a collar, a centre front opening fastening with self fabric buttons and elbow length sleeves with cuff. Green lining is 100% silk.

High platform wedge sandals in blue silk satin fabric with ankle strap and wide band across vamp embellished with white, transparent and blue seed beads and small mirrors and embroidered with dark brown cotton thread. Ankle strap is fastened with silver metal buckle. Sole is of black rubber. Heel inside, underside of ankle straps and vamp lining is of blue leather.

Designed: Dinnigan, Collette; Sydney, New South Wales; 1999

Designed: Sergio Rossi; Italy

Owned: Martin, Catherine; New South Wales; 1999

2011/43/56

1999