Lesley Harding

Kendrah Morgan

The impact of Mirka and Georges Mora on Australian art and food has been remarkable. Arriving in Melbourne in 1951 from Paris, they energised local society and transformed the culinary and artistic landscapes. Their apartment became a hub for the bohemian set, and their cafes and restaurants brimmed with sophisticated food, sexual intrigue and creative endeavours. Mirka's distinctive art, now collected by major galleries, was a vital part of this heady mix. Their eateries were magnets to the rich and famous, a who's who of the art world and those looking for a seriously good time. Mick Jagger was a customer. As were Bob Dylan, Barry Humphries, Jean Shrimpton, Ava Gardner, Gregory Peck, Marlene Dietrich, Fred Astaire, Maurice Chevalier and Graham Kennedy. Launched in the year of Mirka's 90th birthday, Mirka & Georges gloriously illustrates the Moras' extraordinary story, with the couple's classic French recipes, photographs from family albums and images from Mirka's studio by internationally renowned photographer Robyn Lea.

A Culinary Affair

Mirka and Georges

Denise Mimmocchi

O?Keeffe, Preston, Cossington Smith is published with a groundbreaking touring exhibition that brings together the iconic art of American Georgia O?Keeffe with modernist masterpieces by two of Australia's most celebrated and pioneering modernist painters, Margaret Preston and Grace Cossington Smith. The publication brings fresh perspectives on the works of these celebrated modernists, illuminating some of the artistic and cultural parallels and common themes between American and Australian modernism while exploring each artist's unique contribution to international developments of modernism. While O?Keeffe, Preston, and Cossington Smith developed highly individual styles, they are connected by their choice of subject, their experimentation with light, color and form, and their commitment to presenting alternative ways of seeing the world. Each modernised their sense of place, developing new art forms that expressed their respective nations. In considering the similarities and distinctions in their art, this publication aims to bring a deeper understanding of modernism's dispersal and reinvention as it developed beyond the metropolitan wellspring of Europe. Through a selection of wondrous images and engaging and enlightening essays, this book explores the distinct contributions made by O?Keeffe, Preston, and Cossington Smith to the movement of modernism throughout their prolific careers.

Making Modernism

Georgia O'Keeffe, Margaret Preston, Grace Cossington Smith

Glenn Barkley

This exhibition catalogue was published to accompany an exhibition of the same title at Heide Museum of Modern Art, Melbourne in 2012.In a career spanning over sixty years, Ken Whisson has been making thoughtful and uncompromising paintings and drawings which hold a unique place in Australian art. Whisson's reputation has been built around his tenacious dedication to the act of painting and persistent fascination with - and singular responses to - the delicate machinations of both the inner world and the world at large.The exhibition - titled by the artist via Emmanual Kant: `To live as if', and the Paris surrealists: `Let us live as if the world really exists' - traces the evolution of Whisson's major themes and series, from his powerful portrayals of human relations to those which consider relationships with natural, built and cultural environments. Ken Whisson: As If is a major retrospective of the artist's work and is produced in association with the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia.

As If

Ken Whisson

Sue Cramer

Cubism was a movement that changed fundamentally the course of twentieth-century art. It had far-reaching effects, both conceptual and stylistic, which are still being felt today. Described in 1912 by French poet and commentator Guillaume Apollinaire as 'not an art of imitation, but an art of conception', Cubism irreversibly altered art's relationship to visual reality. 'I paint things as I think them, not as I see them', Picasso said. Cubism and Australian Art examines for the first time the impact of this transformative art movement on the work of Australian artists, from the early 1920s to the present day. The authors argue that by its very nature, Cubism was characterised by variation and change, that the idea of a pure or original Cubism was short lived, and that its appearance in Australian art parallels its uptake and re-interpretation by artists internationally. In the words of French artist Andr Lhote, mentor to several Australians who studied at his Academy in Paris: 'There are a thousand defi nitions of Cubism, because there are a thousand painters practising it'. More than eighty international and Australian artists are showcased with over 300 works, featuring Sam Atyeo, Ralph Balson, Grace Crowley, Frank Hinder, Roger Kemp, Godfrey Miller, Stephen Bram and Daniel Crooks, as well as Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque and Fernand L ger.

Cubism & Australian Art

Much has been written about the lives and art of Heide, but finally the remaining members of the inner circle have entrusted the truth to be told through this intimate biography of John and Sunday Reed. Equal parts romance and tragedy, Modern Love explores the lives of these champions of successive generations of Australian artists and writers, whose works and personalities John and Sunday carefully curated to suit their artistic tastes and sexual passions. It is a story of rebellion against their privileged backgrounds and a bohemian existence marked by extraordinary achievements, intense heartbreak and enduring love, a remarkable partnership that changed all those who crossed the threshold into Heide and altered the course of art in Australia.

The Lives of John and Sunday Reed

Modern Love

Sunday Reed was a passionate cook and gardener, who believed in home-grown produce, seasonal cooking and a communal table. Sunday's Kitchen tells the story of food and living at the home of John and Sunday Reed, two of Australia's most significant art benefactors. Settling on the fifteen-acre property in 1935, the Reeds transformed it from a run-down dairy farm into a fertile creative space for artists such as Sidney Nolan, Albert Tucker, Joy Hester and Charles Blackman. Richly illustrated with art, photographs-many previously unpublished-and recipes from Sunday's personal collection, Sunday's Kitchen recreates Heide's compelling and complex story.

Lesley Harding

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