In Australia, she's best known for her 1994 single Chains, her tiny frame and surprisingly soaring voice.
![NGA Ambassador Tina Arena will launch the Versailles: Treasures from the Palace exhibition on December 9.](/web/20161114060828im_/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/s/m/5/n/c/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gsm5e2.png/1478818171586.jpg)
And in France, she's a revered diva who holds a French Knighthood of the Order of Merit.
So it makes a strange kind of sense that top-selling Australian singer Tina Arena is going to be the official ambassador for the summer blockbuster Versailles: Treasures from the Palace, at the National Gallery of Australia.
![The Palace of Versailles.](/web/20161114060828im_/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/q/8/6/0/w/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gsm5e2.png/1478818171586.jpg)
The exhibition will bring more than 130 paintings, sculptures, furniture and precious objects from the Palace of Versailles to Canberra, in the first exhibition of its kind outside France.
Gallery assistant director of brands Alison Wright said Arena was a "beautiful, talented, smart and stylish woman" who would inspire more people to see the exhibition, which opens in December.
"I have been following Tina's career since she was a girl, and she brings a little bit of magic to everything she is involved in," she said.
"I think Australians have a lot of affection and respect for what she has achieved, and in France, well, she is adored."
![The Latona Fountain, Palace of Versailles](/web/20161114060828im_/http://www.canberratimes.com.au/content/dam/images/g/q/8/8/i/6/image.related.articleLeadNarrow.300x0.gsm5e2.png/1478818171586.jpg)
Arena, who found fame in the 1970s and 80s as "Tiny Tina" on Young Talent Time, and has since sold more than 10 million records worldwide, has lived in Europe for the past 15 years. Her partner is French artist Vincent Mancini.
In 2009, the chanteuse became the first Australian artist to be awarded the French knighthood, presented by then president Nicholas Sarkozy for her contributions to French culture.
In a statement through the gallery on Thursday, Arena said it was an honour to tell the world about the upcoming exhibition.
"It's fantastic to think that all Australians will have the chance to experience the history, music, gardens and art of Versailles in Canberra," she said.
"Our two countries have a special bond — something I am very proud to represent."
Arena will be in Canberra for the exhibition's opening celebrations in December.
Versailles: Treasures from the Palace opens December 9 at the National Gallery of Australia and runs until April 17, 2017. Tickets are on sale now through Ticketek.