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Always ModernThe Heide Story

Sidney Nolan, Rimbaud Royalty 1942,  enamel on composition board,  58.6 x 89.3 cm,  bequest of John and Sunday Reed 1982  © Sidney Nolan Trust

This exhibition tells the remarkable origin story of Heide through highlights from the museum collection from the 1930s to 1950s created by leading figures in the history of Australian art. The Reeds purchased the Heide property in 1934 and opened their home to a progressive cultural community, consciously fostering the development of an antipodean modernism. Artists came through in successive waves, beginning with Sam Atyeo, Moya Dyring and Danila Vassilieff in the early days through to Arthur Boyd, Sidney Nolan, Joy Hester, Albert Tucker and John Perceval during the Second World War, and Charles Blackman and Mirka Mora in the postwar period.

Throughout, life at Heide was characterised by a permissive mode of living and loving that has contributed to its reputation as an incubator of the avant garde. Always Modern: The Heide Story explores this rich narrative and celebrates the Reeds’ unswerving commitment to the modernist cause.

When
13 May 2023 – 1 June 2025
Location
Heide Cottage
Admission

Included with museum admission

Curator/s
Kendrah Morgan

Adrian Lawlor, John Reading 1938, oil on canvas, 64.5 x 63 cm, Heide Museum of Modern Art,  gift of Barrett Reid 1990 © Estate of Adrian Lawlor, courtesy of Charles Nodrum Gallery

Adrian Lawlor, John Reading 1938, oil on canvas, 64.5 x 63 cm, Heide Museum of Modern Art,  gift of Barrett Reid 1990 © Estate of Adrian Lawlor, courtesy of Charles Nodrum Gallery

Sidney Nolan, Arabian Tree 1943, enamel on plywood, 91.8 x 61 cm, Heide Museum of Modern Art, bequest of John and Sunday Reed 1982 © Sidney Nolan Trust

Sidney Nolan, Arabian Tree 1943, enamel on plywood, 91.8 x 61 cm, Heide Museum of Modern Art, bequest of John and Sunday Reed 1982 © Sidney Nolan Trust

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