Third-generation curator explores grandmother's bohemian legacy at Heide

Lily Mora, a third-generation gallerist and art curator, is shining a spotlight on her late grandmother's pioneering role in Australian modernism through a new exhibition that challenges conventional narratives about women artists of the post-war era.

The exhibition, Always Modern: Radical Nurture, opening at the Heide Museum of Modern Art in Bulleen, Victoria, draws directly from the personal archives of French-born Australian artist Mirka Mora, who defied 1950s social expectations by pursuing a serious artistic career whilst raising a family.

The Heide Circle and its radical vision

At the heart of the exhibition lies the story of the Heide Circle—a collective of pioneering modernist artists who gathered at Heide, a former dairy farm on the Yarra River flood plain. Founded by patrons John and Sunday Reed, the property became a sanctuary for creative rebels united by a shared commitment to artistic innovation and communal living.

Mirka Mora was among this tight-knit bohemian circle during the 1950s and 60s, a period when most Australian women were expected to prioritise domestic duties over professional ambition. Rather than conform, she actively rejected traditional gender roles, instead embracing a free-thinking lifestyle that allowed her to create some of her most significant works whilst building a family.

"Art and life were inseparable for the members of the Heide Circle," Mora said in a statement about the exhibition, emphasising how creative practice was woven into the daily fabric of the community rather than compartmentalised from personal relationships.

A family legacy of artistic courage

Lily Mora's decision to curate this exhibition represents a deeply personal investigation into her grandmother's world. The project examines how artists within the Heide Circle nurtured one another's creativity whilst maintaining an unconventional approach to domestic life—a model that challenged prevailing mid-century attitudes about motherhood, marriage, and artistic dedication.

Mirka Mora's own memoir, Wicked but Virtuous, published in 2000, hinted at the complexities of her life as a working artist and mother. The new exhibition builds on this foundation, providing broader context about the creative environment that enabled her to thrive professionally.

Significance for Australian art history

The exhibition arrives at a moment when Australian art institutions are increasingly re-evaluating the contributions of female artists from the modernist period. By centering Mirka Mora's story and those of her contemporaries, the Heide Museum is helping to correct historical oversights that often marginalised women's artistic achievements in favour of male-dominated narratives.

The show also reflects growing scholarly interest in how bohemian communities functioned as laboratories for social experimentation, particularly regarding gender roles and creative collaboration. The Heide Circle's model of communal artistic practice offers historical perspective on contemporary conversations about work-life balance and artistic identity.

Always Modern: Radical Nurture is on display at the Heide Museum of Modern Art. This article was originally reported by ABC News.