POWERHOUSE COLLECTION

'The Home' magazines

Object No. 2008/135/1

Sydney Ure Smith's 'The Home' magazine was one of the most sophisticated and stylish design journals and Australian 'lifestyle' publications of the 1920s and 30s. As well as having covers decorated by distinguished Australian artists and designers, there were also artist-designed full page colour advertisements published within the magazine or as features on back covers. Aimed at middle class Australian women, the magazine documented the social concerns of the day through feature articles and photography. Through these articles, cover designs, advertisements and photography, one can assess the impact of international art and design movements on Australia and on the personal tastes and lifestyle aspirations of an increasingly affluent, urban middle class. Artists and photographers commissioned by Sydney Ure Smith, included Hera Roberts, Thea Proctor, Dahl Collings, Margaret Preston, Frank Hinder, Douglas Annand, Harold Cazneaux and Max Dupain. The magazine's graphic cover designs reflect great diversity of style. The new feminine framework was reflected in the lavish cover illustrations by Thea Proctor, Hera Roberts, Douglas Annand and others, which featured glamorous women living active modern lives. John Fairfax & Sons Ltd, publishers of the Sydney Morning Herald, took over The Home in 1934, and Ure Smith severed his connection with the magazine in 1938, founding Ure Smith Pty Ltd in 1939. These 16 issues of The Home date from the later, John Fairfax & Sons Ltd years of The Home magazine production. Anne-Marie Van de Ven, Curator. March 2008