Anna Johanna Maria "Annita" van Iersel (born 5 October 1948), known as Annita Keating from 1975 to 1998, is a Dutch-born Australian artist and former wife of Paul Keating, former Prime Minister of Australia.
Annita van Iersel | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Spouse of the Prime Minister of Australia | |
| In office 20 December 1991 – 11 March 1996 | |
| Preceded by | Hazel Hawke |
| Succeeded by | Janette Howard |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Anna Johanna Maria van Iersel 5 October 1948 Oisterwijk, North Brabant, Netherlands |
| Spouse | Paul Keating (m. 1975, div. 2008) |
| Children | 4 |
| Alma mater | Australian National School of Arts |
| Occupation | Artist |
Early life
editBorn in Oisterwijk, North Brabant, Netherlands, she studied languages in Paris and London. She worked at KLM and Alitalia as a flight attendant.[1]
Marriage
editWhile working with Alitalia, she met Paul Keating, then an aspiring young politician.[2] They married on 17 January 1975. Her parents later joined her in Australia.[3]
While her husband was prime minister (from 1991 to 1996),[4] their four children[4] spent part of their teenage years at The Lodge, the prime minister's official residence in Canberra. Annita was well travelled, and this, along with her knowledge of five languages, proved a valuable diplomatic asset, especially in support of Sydney's bid for the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games.[5]
In 1998, Annita and Paul Keating separated. They did not formally divorce until 2008, though she had resumed her maiden name of van Iersel long before then.[6] Annita revealed some years after the event, in an interview with her by The Bulletin, that Keating had broken off the relationship, not she, and had done it at a dinner party with friends.[7]
Art career
editThe same year she and Paul separated, Annita enrolled in a Master of Fine Arts course, majoring in photography, at the Australian National School of Arts in Darlinghurst, Sydney. She graduated in 2001. In March 2008 she was scheduled to exhibit a series of paintings – oils on Belgian linen – that she created in her studio on the Hawkesbury River.[8]
References
edit- ^ "Annita van Iersel former spouse of PM Paul Keating". DACC. 3 January 2024. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
...Annita pursued language studies in Paris and London...
- ^ "From aircraft aisle to wedding aisle". news.com.au. 20 July 2010. Retrieved 20 November 2011.
- ^ "Annita van Iersel former spouse of PM Paul Keating". DACC. 3 January 2024. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
- ^ a b Paul Keating – Prime Minister from 20 December 1991 to 11 March 1996 – National Museum of Australia
- ^ "Annita Keating". Australia's Prime Ministers. National Archives of Australia. Retrieved 31 January 2013.
- ^ Sharp, Annette (8 June 2013). "Coy Keating must publicly 'fess his love". The Daily Telegraph.
- ^ Paul Ended Our Marriage at a Dinner Party Sydney Morning Herald, 20 April 2004
- ^ Wright, Tony (20 March 2008). "Former PM's wife faces life with easel". The Age. Melbourne. Retrieved 4 September 2009.