Taste & Temptation: Johnston Collection exhibition tour now open

The Johnston Collection house museum in East Melbourne is thrilled to welcome Dr Matthew Martin as guest curator of their latest exhibition tour Taste & Temptation.

Dr Martin is a specialist in European luxury arts of the 1600s-1800s. For 13 years, he was a curator in the Department of International Decorative Arts at the National Gallery of Victoria and is currently a faculty member in Art History and Curatorship at the University of Melbourne.

This autumn and winter, each room of the museum’s historic, 1860s townhouse "Fairhall", has been theatrically reimagined to evoke the lavish art of eating and drinking in Europe in the eighteenth century. In the 1700s, food and drink were more than mere sustenance. A table could display wealth, style, and luxury, be the setting for gossip and social intrigue, and reveal powerful political allegiances.

In this exhibition tour, visitors explore a haven for political rebels; a stylish Continental Kaffeeklatch where women enjoyed coffee and conversation; a sumptuous dessert setting; a baroque dining room laden with silver; and an elegant morning room for the rituals of dressing and hot chocolate.

“I hope the exhibition inspires visitors to think about some of the frankly odd things we do at the dining table and reflect on why this is the case,” Dr Martin said. 

“What one ate, and how one ate it, was inescapably political, and this social-political dimension of dining practices is still with us today.”

The Johnston Collection houses a superb collection of English Georgian, Regency, and Louis XV fine and decorative arts and hosts a vibrant program of guided tours, lectures, workshops, and events.

"Fairhall" and the Collection were a gift to the people of Victoria from William Robert Johnston (1911-1986), a prominent Melbourne-born antique dealer, real estate investor, and collector. In line with Mr Johnston’s wishes, the Collection is displayed in a regularly re-arranged domestic setting. Visitors have a unique opportunity to examine precious silver, furniture, glass, ceramics, timepieces, and objet d’art without the distraction of ropes or labels.

The Johnston Collection warmly welcomes visitors to experience Taste & Temptation. The exhibition is open Wednesdays to Sundays until September 27, 2026, for pre-booked tours (for individuals or groups of up to 22).

View exquisite fine and decorative arts from The Johnston Collection in an exciting new arrangement and discover the taste and temptations of eighteenth-century drinking and dining.

For more information, pick up a brochure at East Melbourne Library, the Melbourne Visitor Hub, or visit johnstoncollection.org •