Abbey Lee Kershaw

Abbey Lee Kershaw

Abbey Lee at the premiere of Ruben Guthrie, July 2015
Born (1987-06-12) 12 June 1987
Melbourne, Australia
Occupation Model, actress, musician
Years active 2007–present

Modeling information

Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[1]
Hair color Blonde
Eye color Blue
Manager Next (London, New York, Paris, Milan)
Chic Management (Sydney)
2pm Model Management (Copenhagen) 62Models and Talent (New Zealand)

Abbey Lee Kershaw (born 12 June 1987), known professionally as Abbey Lee,[2] is an Australian fashion model, actress and musician.[3][4] Following several years of success leading up to the 2011 fashion seasons, V magazine dubbed Kershaw a supermodel.[5]

Early life

Kershaw was born in Melbourne. She is the daughter of Kerry, a psychologist, and Kim Kershaw, who played in the Victorian Football League for Richmond and Hawthorn.[6][7][8] She has said that as a child, she was "always in the hospital." At age four, she suffered from meningitis and had to have two spinal taps. She also had a tumour on the knee, and several broken bones from climbing trees.[9] She grew up in Kensington and attended St Michael's Catholic Primary school in North Melbourne. She has stated that she "grew up with 42 nationalities", explaining that her primary school of 150 children was very multicultural. She then attended the Academy of Mary Immaculate in Fitzroy. She later went on to win the Australian 2004 Girlfriend Model Search.[10] After high school, in 2005, she moved from Melbourne to Sydney to begin modelling. She lived 100 metres from the beach and it was while at the beach where she was scouted by Chic Management's Kathy Ward,[11] the model scout that also discovered Miranda Kerr and Samantha Harris.[12] She signed with Chic Management within weeks.[13]

Career

2007–09

In 2007, Kershaw signed with Next Management and by March had moved to New York City.[13] On 11 December, Models.com named her the "Next Superstar".[14]

Kershaw made her debut in the 2008 New York Fashion Week, managing to walk a total of 29 shows for designers such as Oscar de la Renta, Halston, and notably closing for Rodarte.[15] For her first time in Milan Fashion Week, she was booked as a Gucci exclusive.[16] Later that year, in September, she fell in her high heels at the Rodarte show in New York.[17] Then, a month later in Paris, she fainted at the Alexander McQueen show from wearing a very tight leather corset.[18] Regardless of these two incidents, it did not affect her from booking more runways shows.[17][18] Kershaw was one of new faces to appear on one of the fourteen covers of V magazine's Autumn issue.[19] On 15 November 2008, in Miami, she made her international TV appearance at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, modelling in the Pink Planet segment.[20]

Kershaw has starred in the fragrance ads for Gucci's new "Flora" scent since 2008.[21]

In November 2009, Fashion TV placed her first in their First Face Countdown for Spring/Summer 2010. Kershaw had to sit out the Autumn 2009 shows due to a knee injury: she had torn ligaments and could barely walk.[10] Kershaw was featured in the explicit shoot for the French magazine Purple Fashion published Autumn/winter 2009.[22] The infamous spread, shot by photographer Terry Richardson, caused outrage in the blogosphere, where Richardson was accused of cajoling the girls for his own sexual satisfaction. In his defense, Kershaw said, "Terry doesn't force girls to do anything they don't want to. He puts you in a G-string in a pile of mud because you want to do it. You touch yourself because you want to. For me, that shoot was the truth about how things were between us both, and I felt good doing it. I'm not ashamed of it—why should I be?"[9] After skipping the Autumn 2009 season owing to a knee injury, Kershaw reappeared in Milan Fashion Week, opening D&G to having the first and last looks at Fendi and Versace, prompting New York Magazine to name her "Milan's Top Model".[23] On 1 December 2009, for the second time, she participated in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show, but this time she had three outfits, modelling in the "Star Trooper," "Pink Planet", and in the "Enchanted Forest" segment.[24]

2010–11

In 2010, Kershaw was heavily in demand for campaigns, shoots and shows.[9] Kershaw was featured in the 2010 Pirelli Calendar photographed by Terry Richardson,[25] and the 2011 Pirelli Calendar photographed by Karl Lagerfeld. In March 2010, it was announced that she will be the face of Chanel's Autumn/Winter 2010/2011 ready-to-wear ad campaign. This news came after she closed the Chanel Spring 2010 couture show, and opened the Chanel Autumn/Winter 2010/2011 ready-to-wear show.[26] In November, for the fourth time, she became the cover model of Australian Vogue (her previous covers of the same publication were in March 2010, March 2009, and September 2008).[27]

She took her own self-portrait for the new Rag & Bone Do-It-Yourself ad campaign spring 2011 along with models Sasha Pivovarova, Edita Vilkeviciute, Karolina Kurkova, Candice Swanepoel and Lily Aldridge.[28] She earned $100,000 as an exclusive for Chanel, walking for their spring-summer collection in Paris.[29] She skipped New York Fashion Week for London.[30] V Magazine's "The Discovery Issue" crowned Abbey Lee Kershaw as the new Supermodel.[5] The magazine called Kershaw "the biggest fashion export from Down Under since Elle Macpherson joined the ranks of Cindy Crawford, Claudia Schiffer, Kate Moss, Naomi Campbell and Christy Turlington."[31]

Kershaw has been on the May 2011 cover of Numero, photographed by Tom Munro.[13]

2012–13

Kershaw has been absent from the runway since the Fall 2012 shows where she walked only for Alexander Wang and Anna Sui. During 2012, she focused on acting and spent much of the year in Africa filming the post-apocalyptic film Mad Max: Fury Road (2015).

Although Kershaw was ranked 4th at the height of her career on the Top 50 Models Women list by models.com, she currently ranks 12th on the list, as of June 2013.[32] and is ranked 21st on the "Top Money Girls" list by models.com.[33]

Kershaw appeared in the Fall/Winter 2013–14 Campaign for Gucci alongside male model Adrien Sahores, shot by Mert Alas and Marcus Piggott.

2014–present

In May 2014, Kershaw once again appeared on the cover of Vogue Australia and starred in two editorials on the same issue, in which was celebrate her debut into acting career. In August 2014 Models.com moved Abbey to the Industry Icon list considering her still going presence in fashion with big fragrances contracts as Flora By Gucci and Versace's Yellow Diamond, although she was absent from runways and editorials to film Mad Max and Gods of Egypt.

Kershaw co-starred in the 2015 film Mad Max: Fury Road, alongside Tom Hardy, and appeared in the film Gods of Egypt (2016), alongside Gerard Butler.[34] In January 2015, it was confirmed that Lee will portray Sarah in the Nicolas Winding Refn-directed thriller film The Neon Demon[35] and co-stars Elle Fanning.[36][37] In February 2015, it was confirmed that Abbey Lee In Talks To Play Tirana In The Dark Tower[38]

Personal life

She is friends with models Freja Beha Erichsen, Karmen Pedaru, Joan Smalls, Catherine McNeil, Crystal Renn and Courtney Eaton.[10] She has a pet lizard named Annie Hall.[9] Kershaw has 13 piercings in total: on her nose (her left nostril & septum), on the right nipple, a pierced belly button, and seven & two on her ears. She also has various tattoos, including; a small peace sign on the palm of her hand, an owl on her middle finger, the symbol for Gemini on her ankle, and a tattoo reading "truth", hidden on the inside of her bottom lip. She has recently added two on the side of her stomach done in white ink. Kershaw is also an artist who does abstract painting and uses oil pastels.[39] She is a drummer in an Australian band and hopes to pursue a broader music career in the future.

Filmography

Year Film Role Notes
2015 Ruben Guthrie Zoya
2015 Mad Max: Fury Road The Dag
2016 Gods of Egypt Anat
2016 The Neon Demon Sarah
2016 Office Christmas Party Savannah Filming

References

  1. "Abbey Lee Kershaw". Models.com.
  2. Gusmaroli, Danielle (10 August 2014). "Abbey Lee (Kershaw) ditches last name for Mad Max: Fury Road". Daily Mail. Retrieved 12 April 2015.
  3. Herbst, Kendall (6 May 2008). "Four Other Faces". New York Magazine.
  4. Dance, Stevie. "Music /Our Mountain". Rush Magazine. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  5. 1 2 Mr. V (10 January 2011). "A IS FOR ABBEY: NEW SUPERMODEL". V (magazine). Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  6. Daily Telegraph, "Catherine McNeil and Abbey Lee Kershaw wow New York Fashion Week", 9 September 2008
  7. http://www.smh.com.au/national/model-act-the-multitalented-abbey-lee-kershaw-20141031-1162m8.html
  8. http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/fashion/spot-the-supermodel-20111109-1n77o.html
  9. 1 2 3 4 Gray, Richard (7 March 2010). "Abbey Lee, the big face of 2010". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  10. 1 2 3 Rao, Priya (8 September 2009). "This Week's Model: Abbey Lee Kershaw". W. Archived from the original on 13 January 2010. Retrieved 20 February 2010.
  11. stephan (28 December 2007). "…and here she is!". models.com. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  12. Strebe, Sacha (13 July 2010). "Kathy Ward nurtures Miranda Kerr, Harris and McNeil". Goldcoast. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  13. 1 2 3 "Abbey Lee". New York Magazine.
  14. wayne (11 December 2007). "Next Superstar Alert". Models.com.
  15. "Karlie Kloss Is Fashion Week’s Top Model". New York Magazine. 11 February 2008.
  16. Herbst, Kendall (19 February 2008). "Gucci Books Abbey Lee Exclusive". New York Magazine. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
  17. 1 2 Blasberg, Derek (9 September 2008). "Blasblog: Abby Lee’s Stumble And Fall". Style File blog. Style.com. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  18. 1 2 Foster, Kimberley (7 October 2008). "Abbey Lee Kershaw faints on catwalk at Alexander McQueen". catwalkqueen.tv. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  19. Lim, James (10 September 2008). "Ogle ‘V’ Magazine’s Fourteen New Cover Models". New York Magazine. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  20. "Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2008 Gallery".
  21. Clott, Sharon (5 December 2008). "Courteney Cox and Faith Hill Get Fragrance Deals; Tom Ford Makes Soap on a Rope". New York Magazine. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  22. purple best of season- f/w 09
  23. Lim, James (1 October 2009). "Abbey Lee Is Milan's Top Model". New York Magazine. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  24. "Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2009 Gallery".
  25. Bell, Gabriel (18 June 2009). "Terry Richardson and Most of the World's Models Gang Up for Pirelli Calendar 2010". New York Magazine. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
  26. "Aussie Abbey's the face of 2010". The Sydney Morning Herald. 30 March 2010.
  27. Cowles, Charlotte (25 October 2010). "Abbey Lee Kershaw Covers Australian Vogue for the Fourth Time". New York Magazine. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
  28. "Rag & Bone DIY Campaign". VainStyle. 31 January 2011.
  29. Hush, Kellie (27 January 2011). "From McDonald's to Chanel, Abbey cashes in at the Paris end". The Sidney Morning Herarld. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
  30. Sells, Emma (10 February 2011). "ABBEY LEE'S DITCHING NY FOR LONDON". Elle UK. Retrieved 20 February 2011.
  31. http://au.lifestyle.yahoo.com/marie-claire/fashion/news/article/-/8748111/australias-next-it-model-abbey-lee-kershaw/
  32. Top 50 models women 15 June 2011,
  33. Abbey Lee (Mad Max: Fury Road)
  34. The Neon Demon Snags Abbey Lee
  35. ‘Neon Demon’ Sucks Out Virginal Youth and Beauty
  36. Abbey Lee To Star In Nicolas Winding Refn's 'Neon Demon' | Deadline
  37. Glass, Jess (18 February 2011). "Model Abbey Lee Kershaw Is Also An Artist". Pedestrian.tv. Retrieved 25 February 2011.

External links

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