Grandmothers

MMV Group Project

6 May — 28 October

Grandmothers

MMV Group Project

Featuring stories of grandmothers from across Melbourne, Multicultural Museums Victoria presents its inaugural joint project — ‘Grandmothers’. Through five extraordinary exhibitions and accompanying events, join us in celebrating the accomplishments, wisdom and the central role of the grandmother in Chinese, Italian, Greek, Muslim and Jewish communities.

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Exhibitions

Wàipó 外婆

Chinese Museum

Wàipó  外婆 at the Chinese Museum, chronicles the traditions and changing roles of grandmothers in China and in Australia through specially commissioned artworks by Nicholas Chin, Emilia Johari, Yinghong Li, Tammy Wong Hulbert, Judy Leong and Xiao Yu Bai. It explores how these artists’ individual histories and intimate relationships were impacted after they or their family immigrated, and the traditional roles and different cultural influences from China to Malaysia and Australia.

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Nonne: images through generations

Co.As.It Italian Historical Society & Museo Italiano

Nonne: images through generations at Co.As.It Italian Historical Society & Museo Italiano explores the role of the Italian-Australian grandmother in Australian society, the contributions that she makes in the everyday life of her family and in the transmission of customs and traditions to the next generation. This exhibition draws on the historical photographs of the Italian Historical Society, as well as on images and stories from the Italian community. It looks at how the grandmother’s role has changed and evolved through immigration, as well as her status in the community today.

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Yiayia

Hellenic Museum

The Hellenic Museum presents grandmothers as storytellers, nurturers and educators. Their exhibition, Yiayia, gives voice to these women and their stories, from childhood, to adulthood, to grandmotherhood and older age. From family heirlooms to filmed interviews and family photographs, the Yiayia exhibition resonates with visitors of all ages and cultures, reflecting a range of differing experiences, challenging the idea that there is only one course for a woman’s life to take.

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Our Grandmothers

Islamic Museum of Australia

Mothers, sisters, daughters, teachers, friends, homemakers, doctors, businesswomen, grandmothers, humans — warriors. Honouring the ‘mothers behind our mothers’, the Islamic Museum’s Our Grandmothers exhibition pays deference to the essence of Muslim grandmothers by displaying portraits sourced from Melbourne’s Muslim communities, accompanied by stories, quotes and recipes. Visitors are invited to celebrate the love, spirit, strength and wisdom embodied by Muslim grandmothers, and their role within Islam.

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Love & Legacy

Jewish Museum of Australia

Love & Legacy at the Jewish Museum explores the diversity of Jewish grandmothers. Through film and portraits, Jewish women from Orthodox, secular, Ashkenazi, Sephardi and Holocaust survivor backgrounds, tell their stories, complemented by objects from the Museum’s collection. Love & Legacy looks at the many ways cultural knowledge, shared histories and family traditions are kept alive from one generation to the next. This exhibition provides a space to celebrate and fully acknowledge the achievements, contributions, experience and knowledge of our grandmothers.

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