A cloudless blue sky signifies freedom and optimism for many of us. The skies depicted in this group of paintings aim to do just that. 

These works continue my exploration into notions of place, culture, history, nostalgia and design from my lived experience as a 2^nd generation Jewish Australian who has spent most of her life living in the epicentre of Jewish life in Naarm/Melbourne’s inner south-eastern suburbs. Depicting mid-century modern homes located close to where I grew up and still live, these paintings intend to evoke feelings of nostalgia and optimism through their compositional and colour references to 1960s postcards.

With two sets of European grandparents, and childhood friends experiencing similar upbringings, I saw people who had been forced to leave long established homes, businesses and relationships reap the rewards of hard work and persistence undertaken in a new country. My grandparents created comfortable, stylish homes filled with custom designed furniture and art.  There was an appreciation of beauty and craftsmanship present.

Many of the homes built in the 1960s in the Naarm/Melbourne suburbs of Elwood, St Kilda East, and Caulfield (North and South) were the result of collaborations between Jewish clients and European trained émigré architects influenced by the Bauhaus movement. These homes were, and those still standing are, symbols of survival, prosperity and hope. They were built with the best materials the clients could afford; often simplified, functional forms with crazy paving, stonework and decorative wrought iron providing ‘interest’ and a sense of luxury. Large windows allowed light and the blue sky to be brought into the interiors creating a sense of space and freedom - a new modern way of living.

The paintings shown here represent cultural and design history as well as investigating the use of simple painting devices – flat blocks of colour and composition-to suggest form and convey a believable image. The works prompt the viewer to consider the optimism with which the homes depicted would have been built, under a wide, blue sky.