Bendigo Art Gallery director Jessica Bridgfoot remembers Maggi Eckardt

Eckardt, known as Australia's first international supermodel, passed away last week aged 82.

The Sydney-born fashion identity worked with designer Cristobel Balenciaga during her modelling career and helped open the helped open the Balenciaga exhibition in Bendigo last year.

"Maggi was a true beauty - always poised, always immaculate," Ms Bridgfoot said. "She was very generous with her time and sharing her memories and personal details of her time with Balenciaga and photographer Tom Kublin.

"Maggi had that unflappable elegance and poise of women of that era coupled with an underlying steel of a woman who had gone it alone - backed herself - in a time when society was still very patriarchal.

"Her contribution to fashion and design was remarkable - she was a talented risktaker who firmly planted herself in Paris during the golden age of fashion - her presence will be missed."

Ms Bridgfoot also recalled Eckardt's quick wit during a preview of the exhibition.

"There was a moment on stage during our member preview - I had Maggie Eckhardt on the left of me - Lisa Wilkinson on the right - two beautiful and incredibly intelligent women - I asked Maggi a question about her arrival in London on a cargo ship in the 60s - to which she loudly refuted 'UNTRUE!'," Ms Bridgfoot said.

"There was a moment of very solid silence (and) Maggi quickly followed up a colourful recount (her version) of events. I quickly realised that she'd played me. She knew exactly what she was doing - she had it all figured out - and the audience loved her.

"During the press call for Balenciaga, myself, Maggie and the Victoria and Albert Museum curator Stephanie Wood were all together for a photograph (and) Maggi just clicked into modelling mode - chin up, hips out, showing us how it was done. We were quite awestruck - she was an absolute superstar."