Penrith Regional Gallery (PRG) with partner institution the Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences (MAAS) will host a major new exhibition that explores Australian experiences of home across the past 100 years. This will encompass domestic architecture, design and technology, alongside contemporary social issues which threaten the fabric of our intimate lives: domestic violence, homelessness, housing affordability and the notion of Australia as a refuge. 

The new exhibition, titled The Ideal Home, will be on display from 1 December 2018 to 24 March 2019. it will present a history of the 20th century Australian home told through household objects, furniture and design classics from the MAAS Collection. 

The exhibition will take over the entire Penrith Regional Gallery site, as well as extending to a satellite exhibition of modernist art and design at MAAS venue the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, with each space enabling a different consideration of exhibition ideas and themes.

The exhibition at Penrith Regional Gallery will include approximately 70 objects from the MAAS collection of post-war furniture, home appliances, architectural models, interior design, and everyday domestic objects, with an emphasis on mid-century Australian design. Featured will be recent and commissioned artworks by artists Catherine O’Donnell, eX de Medici, Blake Griffiths, Richard Goodwin, Karla Dickens, Eliza Gosse, Cope Street Collective, and Victoria Garcia. 

"In The Ideal Home Sydney audiences can look forward to an exciting program including exhibition, education and public discussion," says Dr Lee-Anne Hall, director of Penrith Regional Gallery.

"This exhibition will appeal to a broad audience, having both nostalgic appeal and points of interest for fans of modernist architecture, furniture and contents design. This diverse and interactive exhibition offers a fantastic opportunity for our audience to engage with themes and issues that continue to define home life in Australia today."