Shakespeare to Winehouse open 9:00am–7:00pm on Thu, Fri, Sat from 7 July
Mirka Mora (1928–2018), French-born artist and restaurateur, was loved as much for her contributions to contemporary art as for her generous and outrageous nature. Having narrowly escaped Auschwitz as a girl, Mora trained in drama in Paris. By 1951, when she came to Melbourne with her husband, Georges, she was committed to painting. Soon the couple became friends with the city's leading artists and collectors, and were instrumental in the re-formation of the Contemporary Art Society. Over the 1950s and 1960s they opened the European-style Mirka Café in Exhibition Street, Balzac in East Melbourne and the Tolarno in St Kilda. While Georges established himself as an art dealer, opening Tolarno Galleries in 1967, Mirka became a bohemian icon of the city. She worked prolifically for six decades across a range of media and is represented in many state and regional collections.
In the mid-1960s Lazar Krum took several portraits of Mora and her family at her studio/home on Collins Street. Defined by affection and warmth, the photographs provide an insight into the character of the artist. In this image, Mora stands with her son, Philippe in front of one of her murals featuring characteristic softly rounded, angelic figures; she regards the lens with twinkling eyes and crossed arms.
Gift of the artist 2015
Lazar Krum (age 18 in 1966)
Mirka Mora (age 38 in 1966)
Philippe Mora (age 17 in 1966)
Lazar Krum (3 portraits)
On one level The Companion talks about the most famous and frontline Australians, but on another it tells us about ourselves: who we read, who we watch, who we listen to, who we cheer for, who we aspire to be, and who we'll never forget. The Companion is available to buy online and in the Portrait Gallery Store.
Select extracts from Mirka Mora's autobiography, Wicked but Virtuous, provide rich accompaniment to recent Gallery acquisitions.
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