The Kitchen

Occasionally the research for an essay heads off into an interesting and unexpected  direction and sometimes this trajectory leads to loads of fun stuff.

An essay I recently did on Lucia Moholy (1898–1989) was based on our visit to the National Gallery of Victoria’s Women Photographers exhibition but also on the subject matter of one of her photographs — a Bauhaus kitchen.

It struck me that there was not a lot of innovative design in this kitchen situated in the living quarters of some of the 1920s world of leading designers. My research led to the revealtion that while the Buahaus architects and designers (the men) placed a lot of exmphasis on buildings, furniture, lighting and rooms such as lounge rooms, the kitchens were seen as functionary.

The real breakthrough on kitchen design was not from the Bauhaus but from designers in Frankfurt after World War II.

Click here for my March 2026 essay: Lucia Moholy: The Kitchen