For Lily Mora, the archives of her late grandmother were more than a family record; they were a map to the very roots of a national movement. A third-generation gallerist and curator, Mora has spent the last several months delving into the personal papers and artworks of Mirka Mora, the French-born artist whose bohemian spirit became a cornerstone of the Melbourne art scene.
The result is Always Modern: Radical Nurture, a new exhibition at the Heide Museum of Modern Art. The show serves as both a personal tribute and a scholarly exploration into the origins of Australian modernism, focusing on the tight-knit, often rebellious community known as the Heide Circle.
Featuring more than 60 works from the Heide collection and the estate of Mirka Mora—who passed away in 2018 at the age of 90—the exhibition brings together a constellation of 20th-century giants. Visitors will find works by Sidney Nolan, Charles Blackman, Joy Hester, Albert Tucker, Sam Atyeo, and Danila Vassilieff, all of whom were shaped by the unique social and creative ecosystem of a former dairy farm in Bulleen.
The architecture of a creative sanctuary
At the heart of the exhibition is the story of John and Sunday Reed, the owners of Heide. To the artists who gravitated toward the Yarra River flood plain, the Reeds provided more than just a meeting place; they provided a lifeline. In an era of conservative social norms, the Reeds fostered a communal cause, offering food, housing, and financial support to avant-garde artists who were largely ignored by the mainstream establishment.
Lily Mora’s connection to the site is lifelong, having first visited as an infant with her father, the renowned gallerist William Mora, who died in 2023. Through this lens, she views the Reeds not just as patrons, but as architects of a radical support system.
“Discovering how radical they were in nurturing that community intrigues me to this day,” Lily Mora said. “Sometimes it was about collecting artists’ work, but other times they provided food and a place to stay for artists who they believed in. Sometimes they gave financial support, too.”
This “radical nurture” allowed the Heide Circle to experiment without the immediate pressure of commercial viability, leading to some of the most pivotal works in the history of Australian art. Mirka Mora arrived in Australia in 1951 with her husband, Georges, and quickly became an integral part of this circle, maintaining a friendship with the Reeds that spanned three decades.
A well-known bohemian figure in Melbourne, Mirka Mora published a memoir in 2000 titled Wicked but Virtuous. Pictured: Mirka Mora, Untitled (Figure with Bird and Angels), 1958. (Supplied: Heide Museum of Modern Art)
Redefining the ‘Artist Mother’
A central theme of the exhibition is the intersection of motherhood and creative ambition. For Lily Mora, now a mother herself, exploring how her grandmother balanced these roles was a primary driver for the show. Mirka Mora was a Holocaust survivor who lived her life with a resolute non-conformity, often encouraging her grandchildren to embrace mischief and curiosity.
In the 1950s, the notion of a woman being both a devoted mother and a successful, uncompromising artist was often viewed as a contradiction. Mirka Mora rejected this tension entirely. She prioritized her painting as a core part of her identity, ensuring her children saw her as an individual first.
“She wanted her children to see her as a person first and a mother second, which I believe is really radical for her time,” Lily Mora said. “Those two [roles] were in tension, but she just didn’t subscribe to that and did manage to be both.”
This theme of care is echoed in other works within the show, most notably a poignant portrait of a young boy by Joy Hester. The painting depicts Hester’s son, Sweeney, created while she was battling lymphoma. In a testament to the unconventional family structures at Heide, Sweeney was eventually placed in the care of John and Sunday Reed, who adopted and raised him.
A photograph of John Reed, Joy Hester, Sunday Reed, who is carrying Sweeney, and Sidney Nolan taken by Albert Tucker in 1945. (Supplied: Heide Museum of Modern Art)
From cardboard toys to avant-garde critiques
The exhibition highlights the playfulness that often underpinned the most serious innovations of the period. Charles Blackman, for instance, is represented not only by an introspective self-portrait but likewise by experimental cardboard cutouts. These works began as toys for his children but evolved into a legitimate exploration of the medium.
Conversely, the show displays the friction between the Heide Circle and the conservative critics of the day. Sidney Nolan’s Head of Rimbaud is a key inclusion—an avant-garde piece that was famously dismissed by critics of the era, some of whom claimed the work resembled French cheese.
Beyond the high-art milestones, the show preserves the intimate bonds of the community. It includes a series of drawings Mirka Mora gifted to the Reeds, capturing summers spent together at beach houses in Aspendale. These pieces underscore the emotional foundation of the movement: a mixture of intellectual rigor and free-spirited acceptance.
One of Australia’s pre-eminent 20th-century artists, Charles Blackman fell in with the Heide Circle after he moved to Melbourne in 1951. Pictured: Charles Blackman, Sweeney Flying a Kite (1952). (Supplied: Heide Museum of Modern Art)
Always Modern: Radical Nurture is currently on view at the Heide Museum of Modern Art in Melbourne and will remain open to the public until August 9.
We would love to hear your thoughts on the legacy of the Heide Circle or your own experiences with Australian modernism. Please share this story and join the conversation in the comments below.
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