Striking resemblance to her great idol Marilyn Monroe: Suzie Kennedy in the Berlin lookalike show “Stars in Concert”  (Photo credit: Stars in Concert)

When Suzie Kennedy walks into a room, everyone in it takes a trip back in time. With her bleach-blonde hair, bright red lips and porcelain skin, she’s the spitting image of Marilyn Monroe. The similarities are not just skin-deep; she sings, speaks and even moves just like the glamorous Hollywood star. All in all, the resemblances pay off, not least when portraying Monroe in the internationally-renowned tribute show “Stars in Concert” as Kennedy has done for the last eight years.

“Acting was never my dream job”, Kennedy says. She wanted to be a vet, but her family couldn’t afford the tuition. She was born to a teacher and a draughtsman in Grants Pass, a city close to the Californian border in Oregon, USA. Kennedy’s parents separated when she was two years old.

She looks confusingly similar

She and her older sister grew up in London, and their father died when Kennedy was just a teenager. Her talents for singing and dancing were discovered by sheer stroke of luck, when, at the age of 15, she applied for work experience running errands for a dance school. The school let her take free ballet classes every day as payment. Afterwards, when Kennedy was studying for her A-Levels at college, people began commenting on her likeness to the Hollywood icon. An agent sent her to an audition, and she landed her breakthrough job: filming an advert for Nestlé with supermodel Naomi Campbell. From then on, the jobs came rolling in. Kennedy has worked for the likes of Citroën and Pepsi, and has appeared in international theatre, TV, and film productions. Acting alongside stars such as Ryan Gosling and Harrison Ford, she’s had roles in the documentary “Who Killed Marilyn Monroe”, the Italian film “Io & Marilyn” and “Blade Runner 2049”.

In 2016, Kennedy modelled Monroe’s iconic clothes for the auction house Julien’s Auctions. By happy coincidence, she is the same size as Marilyn was. The star was known for her curvaceous figure, but, as Kennedy stresses: “Marilyn was actually very delicate. She almost had a fragility to her.” Kennedy drastically changed her diet several years ago. Today, she is a vegetarian and stays trim thanks to her discipline, daily jogging, and working out with weights. Maintaining her flawless alabaster skin is simple in comparison: She doesn’t smoke and religiously applies a cream with SPF 50.

“I can’t just take off this look”, Suzie Kennedy says. (Photo credit: NOVA Productions)

Kennedy’s wardrobe contains 40 replicas of the Hollywood legend’s iconic outfits. Her collection includes a dress identical to the one Monroe wore when she famously sang “Happy Birthday, Mr President” for the former U.S. president John F. Kennedy: a skin-tight silky number with thousands of crystals hand-sewn onto the fabric. The original sold for 4.8 million dollars at an auction to Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum in America. Kennedy – the name is another happy coincidence – is regularly booked to perform the birthday song, with audiences including American TV star Eva Longoria and British businessman Sir Richard Branson.

In 2017, Kennedy won the accolade “Best Female Double” in Las Vegas for her portrayal of Marilyn Monroe. It was also in L.A. that she was discovered by “Stars in Concert” producer, Bernhard Kurz, back in 2010. Since then, she’s appeared regularly in the line-up of the internationally-renowned tribute show.

Kennedy becomes Monroe on-stage, but even off-stage, she lives and breathes the spirit of the Hollywood icon. She has read every biography and watched every film Monroe has acted in. “Marilyn is my soul mate. I’m just like her: vulnerable and a little shy, but I know exactly what I want.” They also share a difficult childhood; both women grew up without a father. “I admire Marilyn for the uncompromising willpower that helped her become the most famous woman of her time.”

Marilyn, her soul mate

Six years ago, Kennedy got her first tattoo out of gratitude towards her idol – a portrait of Monroe on her right wrist. “Marilyn changed my life. Everything I do, I do because of her.” Since then, the Hollywood star is always with Kennedy. “While I was getting this tattoo, I could feel her becoming a part of me.”

Kennedy has a twinkle in her green eyes when she confesses that there are, of course, some differences between the two women. For one, Monroe’s eyes were blue, and Kennedy believes that her idol got mixed up with the wrong crowd. “I’m lucky to have such wonderful friends, not to mention a great relationship with my mother”, she reflects. “But for me, the most important thing is my faith in God.” Even when she’s performing in Berlin, Kennedy prays every day and goes to Sunday services at the American Church.

Kennedy regards Berlin as a home away from her real home in London, where she lives with her pug dog and two cats. She loves the cosmopolitan vibe of the German capital, which is relatively affordable compared to London. Her favourite spot is the “Thai Park”, where an informal weekly food market sells fresh Asian delicacies for just a few euros.

Six years ago, Kennedy got her first tattoo out of gratitude towards her idol (Photo credit: NOVA Productions)

Does she always channel Monroe in her day-to-day life? “I can’t just take off this look”, Kennedy says. She is often mistaken for Monroe when she’s out and about in the supermarket or in restaurants. “It has its benefits. I always get a table”, she laughs. However, her sensuous look has its downsides, too: some see her as a “blonde bimbo”, a stereotype that Monroe also struggled against all her life.

Is it difficult, always pretending to be someone else? “Lots of people would probably be happier if they were able to escape themselves now and then”, Kennedy answers with a smile. She has been portraying Monroe for over two decades now, but she won’t be able to play the starlet forever. Although she looks much younger than her 42 years, Kennedy is now older than her idol ever was – Monroe died at 36 under mysterious circumstances. Kennedy is well aware that the bookings will eventually dry up, marking the end of her career as a look-alike. Marilyn Monroe is her defining role, and she can’t imagine ever playing another person. “Being Marilyn isn’t a job, it’s an honour.” BvH

Suzie Kennedy hopes to perform as Marilyn Monroe in the Berlin “Stars in Concert” show at the Estrel Hotel soon again (Photo credit: NOVA Productions)

Contact and Infos:

stars-in-concert.de

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The art expert, Managing Director and Chairman Europe of the traditional auction house Sotheby’s also has a big name as a private person: Dr. Philipp Duke of Württemberg comes from one of the oldest German noble families, which can be traced back 950 years.
In 1996 Philipp von Württemberg began his career as a furniture expert. Today, the half French (his mother is Princess Diane von Orléans), who grew up at Lake Constance, manages Sotheby’s European operations on the continent. When he is not in Frankfurt, Paris or London, the Duke flies to the other end of the world to buy pictures. In Hamburg, I meet the art jetsetter, who has a Bavarian accent, for a relaxing cup of tea.

Philipp von Württemberg: “I decide things with my gut instinct and find old furniture beautiful. Unfortunately, there is no demand for it today, except for rare high-quality pieces and thus the market is selective.”

MyStylery: You joined Sotheby’s in 1996 as an 18th and 19th century furniture expert. But there is no market for old furniture today. Why?
Philipp von Württemberg: The young generation imagines an antique peasant dresser at most as a unique feature in the apartment. While our grandparents’ houses were full of antiques, including a very stiff and uncomfortable sofa set. Today the Zeitgeist is different and traditional furniture is unfortunately no longer in demand.
MS: Unfortunately you say …
PvW: Yes, because I think old furniture is beautiful. But no one is still cleaning silver today. Even porcelain must be dishwasher safe. The castle-like lifestyle is out of style.
MS: You yourself grew up in a castle.
PvW: That’s true, but with modern influences. My mother, who is an artist, has been collecting contemporary art during my childhood. So I had access to modern art very early on.
MS: How do you furnish nowadays?
PvW: I have separated myself from a lot of furniture over time. Instead of carpets, I prefer wooden floors. The move from London back to Germany was the definitive end of heavy, opulent curtains. However, one room is still very English in style, a kind of reminiscence of childhood. I love the stylistic mix, which is why we have some old masters as well. Between two contemporary pictures hangs a big, golden Baroque mirror and I am often asked if it was a Jeff Koons (laughs).
MS: At 14, you wanted to become a furniture restorer. An unusual career aspiration for a teenager, right?
PvW: Indeed. In the castle of my family there was some furniture, where the plaster crumbled. That was the challenge for me. At a restorer in Ludwigsburg I learned the basic craft. Above all, I understood the furniture, its structure and its history. I have no problem with getting my hands dirty. At some point I realized that you earn money faster with the trade. At flea markets I bought beautiful old things for five Marks and then sold them for double. Without the experience of restoring furniture I would not have been able to become a furniture expert.

Dr. Philipp Herzog von Württemberg, at Sotheby’s Chairman Europe Managing Director Germany and I over a cup of tea

MS: The art market has changed since the turn of the millennium. Art is becoming more and more an investment object.
PvW: When you collect with passion and consideration, art automatically becomes an investment object. You should look more closely at established artists than at young ones, in which you maybe invest 10,000 euros a year. Well-known artists are fast with 100,000 and more. Here one should very carefully consider whether these are artists who are evolving.
MS: How do I know if and how an artist develops?
PvW: You never know that. One has an idea, a feeling. Watch young artists over a couple of years and see what happens. Some disappear after two or three years from the scene. I find some artists schirch …
MS: … Schirch?
PvW: … Schirch is Bavarian and means awful in the sense of outwearing (laughs). What applies to Jonathan Meese. I just had to have that. My advice: to buy a big and a small picture from artists, then – if one artist develops successfully – you can sell the bigger one, keep the smaller one. Not advisable is a purchase just for investment. After all, art comes from the heart and not by calculation. People invest in limited watches and rare luxury cars and already think about the possible resale value when purchasing them. I find that sad.

“From the heart and not by calculation…”

MS: Art collecting is now considered to be bon ton and many collectors are willing to pay astronomically high sums of money. Can the market still serve this hype?
PvW: The hype will continue to be served for eternity. In the past, there were fewer artists, but fewer collectors. The demand today is huge, according to the offer, which is certainly justified by the globalization. There are various art academies, an army of gallery owners is ready to establish the young graduates. And then they serve those who think they have to collect. 20 years ago there were maybe 100 collectors in Germany, today there are 700 top collectors in this country alone.
MS: The art market has developed rapidly and internationally. Where else can you find niches?
PvW: The Asian market is interesting, both for us as an auction house and for collectors. My wife and I are collecting contemporary Chinese artists such as Kusama, Liu Ye, Czeng Fanzhi, Xu Bing, Yue Minjun and some European contemporary artists such as Anselm Kiefer or Gregor Hildebrandt, who inspired me from an early age. I do not buy art because it is hyped by the big galleries, but because I like it.
MS: Are the new ones different from the old collectors?
PvW: Yes, because they are faster, risk-takers, the money seems to be no big issue. Something like 20,000 Euros are spent quite easily, while our grandparents had to think about such a high investment for a long time. People today race over the big fairs like the Frieze and before Art Forum, sometimes buying without watching the artists. It feels like winter sale. 70-80 percent of all artists fall through the grid.
MS: Have you ever been mistaken?
PvW: I bought artists whom I was convinced by. Suddenly they were gone, perhaps unable to withstand the pressure. Even if the investment went down in such a case, I still love the pictures. Not always consistent with my wife’s idea. Art that my wife does not like hangs in my office (laughs).

“Germany is a great country. I really like Berlin when it comes to action. Munich stands for quality of life,” says Philipp von Württemberg, who lives privately in Frankfurt

MS: What do you recommend to young collectors?
PvW: Who builds a collection, must take his time and constantly observe and compare the market. It’s like a stock package that you do not leave to yourself. There is enough art today for smaller budgets, such as editions, fantastic paper works, photographs. Nevertheless, do not buy everything that is called art. Rather, the danger for young artists is that they go up too fast with their prices. An artist must be allowed to develop and not be at the same level as, for example, a Picasso.
MS: Are there any new trends in the collectors scene?
PvW: The so-called luxury goods, such as cars, jewelry, photography, design. A market that has grown tremendously fast. At the Frieze Masters in London, I was fascinated by an African mask that was very contemporary in its clean lines. For 20,000 euros it was offered. In contrast, a work by Tom Wesselmann from the series “The Smoker” for one million. One can certainly discuss which one is of better quality.
MS: Can you even compare that?
PvW: Not really. But it shows that you have to have a sense for aesthetics. The beauty does not always have to be expensive.

“The beauty does not always have to be expensive.”

MS: Evidently, insecurity leads one to hide behind big names instead of acting beyond the mainstream.
PvW: Exactly. This also applies to luxury cars. Ferraris, Mercedes, BMW, Porsche are the four brands that run well.
MS: Isn’t the market for old-timers grazed at some point?
PvW: There is a very small group of collectors with big garages. Others buy one or two vintage cars, which they then drive.
MS: What are you driving?
PvW: I have a Mercedes 190, born in 1957. Beautiful. But I do not need a second or third car. The car market is limited. Collecting pictures is something else, because pictures can be stored.

Philipp von Württemberg is an enthusiastic tinkerer: “In Portugal, I love collecting shells on the beach and sticking them on Ikea picture frames at home.”

MS: Your most spectacular experience as an auctioneer was Alberto Giacometti’s “L’Homme qui marche I”, which provided 104.6 million Euros in 2010. The sculpture was at that time the most expensive piece of art ever sold at an auction. Where there other experiences you like to remember?
PvW: I was initially an expert on 19th-century art, and so often in private houses and castles or in their attics, where I had spotted the stocks with a flashlight. I discovered a so called ‘Sleeper’. My first spontaneous impression was that the pale, green-faced Maria on wood could bring between 6,000 and 8,000 Euros. The picture was then identified by topex experts as one of the rare works of the Spanish painter Luis de Morales and went to London at the Oldmasters auction, where it was estimated at 200,000 to 300,000 Pounds. In the end, the Prado in Madrid got the surcharge for 550,000 Euros. And every time I stand in front of it with my children, I say, look, I found that in an attic.
MS: Are there any disappointing moments in your business?
PvW: It surprises me that at charity auctions people are reserved and do not bid. I stand in front of the audience and there is nothing left to do but wave the objects through with a smile. Charity falls by the wayside.
MS: Can you feel at what time an object has been exhausted in the bidding process?
PvW: I notice that within the first second the object is called out. The room lacks any oxygen, people yawn and do not bid. If then even the charm offensive is of no use, you have to remain cool as an auctioneer: sold and gone.
MS: You even waited a minute with the Giacometti. Motionless.
PvW: That felt like ten hours (laughs). The tension was felt despite absolute silence. Just like the will of the individual bidder. And then there is this one crucial moment. In that moment he does not care. Then it happens that he puts one on top of it. The Giacometti went from seventy over one hundred million.

“You should live with the art.”

MS: The today’s collector’s scene does not seem to begrudge each other anything.
PvW: It’s more about saying I have something that you don’t have. I first discovered it, bought it first. A collector who has just purchased something good is understandably proud and wants to show it to others.
MS: You have never parted with any part of your personal collection. Where do you leave everything?
PvW: That’s actually a problem (laughs). I have enough space in the house, a big office and now two warehouses. A real collector does not say that he has no space left.
MS: You should live with the art, you said. But you don’t do that by putting them in the garage.
PvW (laughs): It’s a collector’s principle to know you have it. To the chagrin of my family, I try to hang pictures every now and then. For every newcomer I find a place to admire him. If I buy a new suit, I would like to put it on immediately. I once bought a picture of Gregor Hildebrandt, it was so big that I could not hang it anywhere. That’s why my advice is, that looking at a picture in the original, is the most important thing when buying. Colors, shape and also the frame play a role. A bad frame destroys a picture. A good frame, on the other hand, makes a bad picture better. Tea tastes better from a nice cup than from a simple glass.
MS: Do you love tea?
PvW: Yes, although I drink a lot of coffee. The disadvantage of coffee is that I only drink it with plenty of milk and sugar. While I drink the tea black, which is healthier. As a kid, I hated tea. At the school in Friedrichshafen we always had tea with our food, especially herbal tea. Why don’t we drink water? I asked myself. I still do not like chamomile- and peppermint tea at all. It was not until my time in London in the 1980s that I discovered drinking tea again. My favorite is Lapsang Souchong. It has a calming effect on me.

“Our name obliges. We behave accordingly and are down to earth. I have a role model for my employees of being a motivator while at the same time standing behind them. I am a team player. If something does not work out, it will be on my head,” says Philipp von Württemberg

MS: You carry the big name of a former, ruling house. You said that responsibility and tradition mean a lot to you. How does this manifest itself in daily life?
PvW: A name obliges. My children got this taught from an early age. And it’s not just about things such as table manners. Nevertheless, we are in a different context today, living in the big city and not in a castle in the countryside. The children were at boarding schools in England and now study in the USA. They come together with different people and get new impulses. You can only improve if you are open to new things and ready to work on yourself.
MS: You yourself have married within the high nobility, your wife is Duchess in Bavaria. Is that intended by your house law?
PvW: Our house law was unchanged since 1828, until we changed it together with my father for the first time in 1994 and that will not be the last renewal. My parents are very young and open in their thinking, which is why two of my brothers married commoners. We live in another time, the monarchy has not existed for more than a hundred years. Also house laws must adapt to the time. After all, we are no longer living in the Middle Ages.
MS: What would you have become if you had not made a Sotheby’s career?
PvW: Artist. I love to work with my hands. I would like to weld metal and build sculptures. If there is something to fix in our house, the task will automatically be handed on to me. Screwing and sawing is exactly my thing. My favorite store is the hardware store.  BvH

Contact Philipp von Württemberg

sothebys.com/en

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The Albertina in Vienna. Here, you can see the great Raphael exhibition until the 7th of January 2018

Fans of art need to hurry: Only until January 7, 2018, the most significant exhibition of this exceptional Italian artist to date can be seen in the Albertina in Vienna. With around 130 drawings and 18 paintings, the exhibition brings together all of Raphael’s most important works: from the early Umbrian period (until 1504) through the years in Florence (1504-1508) to the Roman period (1508-1520), there are impressive works to look at from all creative phases. They are intended to explain Raphael’s meticulous thinking and working processes, from initial idea sketches to detailed and compositional studies and finally to the final painting. His masterful drawings alone made him one of the greatest draughts men of art history.

The Madonna with the Christ Child seating on a stone balustrade

Together with Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo – whom he both worshiped – Raphael (1483-1520) is the great triumvirate of the Renaissance. Raphael, who was born as Raphaelo Santi in Urbino in 1483 and died in Rome in 1520 at the age of only 37, is considered a true universal genius. Whether as a painter and architect in Florence and Rome (inter alia as the site manager of St. Peter’s Basilica) or commissioned by popes and princes. Raphael’s drawings were already collected during his lifetime and are still considered to be a valuable treasure for important collectors. The founder of the Albertina, Duke Albert of Sachsen-Teschen owned more than 50 Raphael drawings alone.

Cecilie in front of a miniature model: The painted papal apartments of the Vatican Palace as a model version give an idea of the size and scope of individual commissioned works by Raphael

Numerous works from the Albertina collection and loans from world-famous museums, including the Uffizi Gallery, the Louvre, the Vatican Museums and the Royal Collection of British Queen Elizabeth II illustrate the work of Raphael, who was always in search of the balance between nature imitation and ideal picture.

Ranking among the most beautiful portrait drawings of the Renaissance is Raphael’s portrait of this graceful youth from 1503

According to Albertina director Klaus Albrecht Schröder after the shows about Van Gogh and Michelangelo, the chronologically designed exhibition is the third most expensive in the history of the Albertina. And – in my opinion – a ‘must-see’ for every art fan.  BvH

I particularly like the red-blue color concept of the exhibition rooms

Raphael is one of the most important masters of art history alongside Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo

The portrait of this comely young man shows the eminent banker and art-loving patron Bindo Altoviti in his early twenties and was formerly wrongly considered to be a self-portrait of Raphael

Raphael’s first self-portrait from 1506

Detailed red-chalk sheet of the Cumaean Sibyl

The Madonna dell ‘ Impannata painted on behalf of Bindo Altoviti. The painting was specially restored for the exhibition, which is why the colors are so expressive

Head of a Cherub (1509). Charcoal on paper

The Holy Family with a Lamb (1507). Oil on wood

Portrait of a 14 year old unknown young man

Me in front of the Madonna with Child (1508). The very fact that this painting is over 500 years old, I find already moving

Albertina and the Raphael exhibition:

albertina.at

More Vienna-tips you can find here: Ein perfekter Tag in Wien,  (A perfect day in Vienna) Part 1-3. A MyStylery-Series

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