Ken Done
Australian painter and designer whose brightly coloured artwork became the basis for a widely distributed clothing and homewares design brand.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
Ken Done is an Australian artist and designer whose name became associated with a distinctive body of brightly coloured images and a consumer design business. Born in Sydney in 1940, Done studied at the National Art School in East Sydney from 1954 to 1959 before working in advertising in New York and London with J. Walter Thompson. He returned to Sydney in 1969 and became a full-time painter in 1975. Although his work entered everyday life through clothing, homewares, public commissions and licensed products, Done has consistently described painting as his primary interest. Done's commercial design activity developed with his wife, Judy Done, through Done Art and Design. The business initially produced small runs of T-shirts featuring Ken Done's artwork and garment designs by Judy. The range expanded into apparel and homewares carrying recognisable Australian subjects, including landmarks, marine life, flowers, animals and simplified urban or coastal imagery. Its visual language is based on strong colour, simplified forms and an optimistic presentation of Australian places and identity. The resulting products helped turn an individual artist's imagery into a highly visible design brand while retaining a direct connection to original paintings and illustrations. His public profile grew substantially during the 1980s. Done contributed major visual works to Expo 88 in Brisbane, including the Children of the World facade for the United Nations Pavilion and large alphabet blocks associated with the Australia Pavilion. These works became prominent images of the cultural celebration surrounding Australia's bicentenary period. He also served as a UNICEF Australia Goodwill Ambassador from 1988 to 2024 and created works connected with the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. In 2006 he designed Australia's United Buddy Bear. Done has maintained a substantial exhibition career alongside the design business. His first solo exhibition was held in Sydney in 1980, and his work has subsequently been shown in Australia, Japan, France, the United Kingdom and the United States. The Powerhouse Museum presented a major retrospective in 1994, while a 2019–2022 regional touring exhibition, Paintings You Probably Haven't Seen, presented 35 works across 11 Australian galleries. The Ken Done Gallery in The Rocks, Sydney, provides a continuing public-facing setting for his work and related products. The brand is best understood as an artist-led design identity rather than a conventional mass-market fashion corporation. It combines original painting, illustration, licensing, apparel, homewares, gallery retail and public cultural projects. Ken Done's public statements have emphasised the movement of art into daily life and the value of accessible visual design. His work has received recognition from Australian design, fashion, tourism and cultural institutions, including appointment as a Member of the Order of Australia in 1992 and a 2022 Australian Fashion Laureate Lifetime Achievement Award. Publicly available reference material does not establish a current corporate owner, a formal listed-company structure or a definitive present operating status for the brand.
History
Kenneth Stephen Done was born in Sydney on 29 June 1940 and grew up in the city's northern suburbs. He left high school at 14 and studied at the National Art School in East Sydney between 1954 and 1959. After completing his studies, he worked in advertising, including with the New York- and London-based agency J. Walter Thompson. This period gave him experience in visual communication, commercial presentation and graphic problem-solving, disciplines that later informed both his paintings and design work. Done returned to Sydney in 1969 to pursue his artistic ambitions and became a full-time painter in 1975. His first solo exhibition took place in Sydney in 1980. He subsequently held more than 100 solo exhibitions, with work shown in Australia and internationally. His paintings are associated with simplified forms, emphatic outlines and vivid colour. Australian landmarks, beaches, marine subjects, animals, flowers and city scenes recur in his imagery, although his wider practice includes painting, illustration, graphics, public art, concepts and commercial design. The connection between Done's art and consumer products developed with his wife, Judy Done. Together they established Done Art and Design, initially producing limited runs of T-shirts using Ken's artwork and Judy's garment designs. The operation grew into a broader clothing and homewares business marketed under the Done Design name. Rather than separating the commercial brand entirely from the artist, the business made his visual vocabulary available in everyday objects. This helped make Done one of the most recognisable Australian artist-designers of the late twentieth century. The 1980s brought major public commissions and a stronger relationship between Done's imagery and Australian national representation. For Expo 88 in Brisbane, he created the colourful Children of the World facade for the United Nations Pavilion and large alphabet blocks for the Australia Pavilion. The works were widely photographed and later restored for the exposition's thirtieth anniversary in 2018. In 1988 he also began his long service as a UNICEF Australia Goodwill Ambassador. In 1989 he was named Australian Father of the Year. Done's work continued to move between galleries, public events and national cultural projects. The Powerhouse Museum mounted a major retrospective in 1994. He was asked in 1995 to prepare proposed Australian flag designs for Ausflag during the period of public debate over republicanism. He produced commissioned works for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games and designed Australia's United Buddy Bear in 2006. His exhibitions expanded internationally, including a first European exhibition in Paris in 1996 and presentations in Los Angeles and London in 2000. A copyright and artistic appropriation dispute arose in 1993 when the band TISM used a Done-style koala image with a syringe on an album cover. Done pursued legal action and obtained an injunction preventing sale of the original release. The album was later issued under a different title with a replacement cover. The episode illustrates the tension between Done's highly recognisable visual language and unauthorised reuse of imagery associated with his work. In the twenty-first century, Done continued exhibiting and maintaining the Ken Done Gallery in The Rocks, Sydney. His 2015 exhibition The Joy of Colour surveyed works from across his career. From 2019, Paintings You Probably Haven't Seen toured regional Australian galleries for almost three years, taking 35 works to 11 venues. His honours include the Member of the Order of Australia for services to art, design and tourism in 1992, a 1993 Fashion Industries of Australia Grand Award, recognition from the Design Institute of Australia, and the 2022 Australian Fashion Laureate Lifetime Achievement Award. Public sources identify the creative founders and the gallery presence but do not provide a definitive current corporate ownership structure or verified financial information.
- 2024
End of UNICEF Australia ambassadorship period
[1]Reference material records Done's UNICEF Australia Goodwill Ambassador service as running from 1988 to 2024.
- 2022
Australian Fashion Laureate lifetime achievement award
[1]Done received a lifetime achievement honour recognising his contribution to Australian fashion and design.
- 2019
Regional tour of Paintings You Probably Haven't Seen
[1]A 35-work exhibition began a nearly three-year tour through 11 regional Australian galleries.
- 2018
Expo 88 works restored
[1]Major Expo 88 works by Done were restored for the exposition's thirtieth-anniversary commemorations.
- 2006
Designs Australia's United Buddy Bear
[1]Done designed and created the United Buddy Bear representing Australia.
- 2000
Sydney Olympic Games commissions
[1]Done produced commissioned works for the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2000 Summer Olympics.
- 1994
Powerhouse Museum retrospective
[1]The Powerhouse Museum presented a major retrospective of Done's work.
- 1992
Appointed Member of the Order of Australia
[1]Done received the AM for services to art, design and tourism.
- 1988
Expo 88 and UNICEF ambassadorship
[1]He created prominent works for Brisbane's Expo 88 and began serving as a UNICEF Australia Goodwill Ambassador.
- 1980
First solo exhibition
[1]Done held his first solo exhibition in Sydney.
Products and positioning
An artist-led Australian design brand built around optimistic, high-colour imagery and the translation of fine-art and illustration into accessible clothing, homewares and gifts.
Apparel
Graphic T-shirts
The original Done Art and Design product line consisted of small runs of T-shirts carrying Ken Done's brightly coloured artwork and garment designs by Judy Done. The shirts translated imagery associated with Australian places, animals and everyday life into accessible wearable graphics and established the connection between Done's painting practice and consumer design.
Apparel
Done Design clothing
Done Design clothing applies Ken Done's simplified forms, strong outlines and vivid colour palette to a broader apparel range. The products are positioned as artist-led Australian design rather than conventional logo sportswear, with visual themes drawn from landmarks, coastal scenes, flowers, marine life and other recognisable subjects.
Homewares
Done Design homewares
Homewares extend Done's imagery beyond clothing into domestic objects and gifts. Public reference material identifies homewares as a significant part of the range, although it does not provide a complete current catalogue or product-by-product availability.
Fine art
Original paintings
Original painting remains Done's central creative practice. His work is known for optimistic colour, simplified composition and Australian subjects, and has been presented through more than 100 solo exhibitions, museums, commercial galleries and the Ken Done Gallery in Sydney.
Art reproductions
Art prints and illustrated editions
Reproductions and editions make selected Done images available outside the original-painting market. They support the brand's broader aim of bringing art and design into everyday spaces, although the reference material does not specify a definitive current range or production quantities.
Marketing campaigns
- 2006United Buddy Bear Australia
Australia · Germany
Done designed and created the United Buddy Bear representing Australia in the international public-art project.
Outcome. The work extended Done's national-representation and public-art practice into an international cultural program.
- 2000Sydney Olympic Games ceremonies
Australia · International
Done was commissioned to produce works for both the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney.
Outcome. The commissions connected his colourful Australian visual language with one of the country's largest internationally broadcast cultural events.
- 1988Expo 88 visual program
Australia
Done created the Children of the World facade for the United Nations Pavilion and large alphabet blocks for the Australia Pavilion at Brisbane's World Expo 88. The highly visible works became associated with the public visual culture of Australia's bicentenary period.
Outcome. The installations became widely photographed and were restored for the Expo 88 thirtieth anniversary in 2018.
Brand decisions
1995
Submits proposed Australian flag designsOtherBackground
During renewed public discussion of Australian republicanism, Done was asked to create a series of flag designs.
Action taken
He submitted 16 designs to Ausflag, including some concepts developed as early as 1981.
Aftermath
The proposals formed part of the wider public debate but did not replace Australia's existing flag.
1993
Legal action over unauthorised artworkOtherBackground
The Australian band TISM used an image resembling Done's recognisable style on an album cover, including a koala with a syringe.
Action taken
Done sued and obtained an injunction preventing sale of the original album release.
Aftermath
The album was reissued under a different title with a replacement cover.
Sources2 sources
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