From the Wigley archives:
The early 70’s was a period for rationalising the ideas of the 60’s. This is a fragment of our search for a ways of living.
In the winter of 1972 Winsome McCaughey wrote an article titled “DAY CARE Liberating who for what ?” in the special edition of Dissent – A radical quarterly published in Melbourne*.
The article included our communal housing project that we were trying to shape a way of living that expanded our children’s life experience beyond the nuclear family.
Dissent
Special Edition-Women in Australia
Our project did not eventuate. After a few meetings to establish communal rules with several interested families who had responded to an advertisement – all strangers-it was decided by the group that children and food sharing would lead to conflicts between parents. The potential for non-equable food distribution was the deal breaker.
We all went our various ways. One family, an ex property’s developer did strike out and built themselves a mud-brick sustainable house in regional Victoria. We gave up on our inner suburb and moved to an eastern suburb near a progressive school and soon after went north.
Note:
*Dissent Cover of Child with doll is not attributed-probably by Charles Blackman, could be Mirka Mora-anyone know?