Every time you drink a Coke, enjoy a milk shake, ice-cream or milk chocolate treat, or go to the cinema, or listen to the latest popular music hit, you can thank Australia’s Greek settlers.
The nationally touring photography exhibition – ‘Selling an American Dream: Australia’s Greek Cafe’ – which explores this important chapter in the development of Australian culture, is now returning to Sydney for display at the Hurstville Museum and Gallery, from 2 August until 28 September 2014.
Critically applauded since its initial launch at the National Museum of Australia in 2008, curators Effie Alexakis and Leonard Janiszewski have cleverly utilised a revealing interplay of historical and contemporary photographs, married to extended oral history captions, and overlaid by a dramatic multimedia presentation created by filmmaker Michael Karris, to present a social history exhibition that has powerfully resonated with audiences across the country.
Australia’s Greek café is presented as a global phenomenon in the modern era. Food-catering enterprises run by Greek migrants successfully married Hellenic and cross-cultural influences with local needs. Greek-run cafés populated Australian country towns and cities, merging local fare with new
American food-catering ideas.
Prior to the explosion of American fast-food franchises, Greek cafés contributed to a major change in Australian eating habits. While a traditional mixed grill remained a favourite, Greek cafés were known for their introduction of American sodas, ice-cream sundaes, milkshakes, hamburgers, milk chocolate and hard sugar candies, into communities right across Australia.
Alexakis’ stunning photographs capture the decor of the cafés, their customers and the owners who worked hard to make their businesses successful. Memorabilia from several Australian Greek cafés including classic Art Deco café tableware, equipment and menus, succeed in bring the era of Australia’s Greek cafés to life.
Research undertaken throughout Australia and internationally highlights these cafés as a ‘Trojan Horse’ for the Americanisation of Australian popular culture – not only affecting eating habits but also cinema, music and architecture.
Throughout most of the twentieth century, Australia’s Greek cafés were powerhouses generating unprecedented social and cultural change.
The official opening of the exhibition will take place on Saturday 2 August, at 2.30 pm at Hurstville City Museum & Gallery, 14 MacMahon Street, Hurstville, Sydney. The exhibition will run until 28 September, Tuesday – Saturday 10.00 am – 4.00 pm, Sunday 2.00 pm – 5.00 pm.
For more information, contact (02) 9330 6444 or visit www.hurstville.nsw.gov.au/lmg