From Slavery to Superwoman : Cooking, Cleaning and Eating 1850-1960 [review]

The Museum of Domestic Design and Architecture (MoDA) is an archive of materials related to the design and decoration of the home. For visitors, MoDA is represented largely by two galleries, housing a permanent display and temporary exhibitions respectively, and a small library or study room. The permanent display is distinguished from related treatments of domestic design and architecture such as that at the Geffrye Museum in East London by its focus on the twentieth century (the Geffrye deals with several centuries of changing tastes), by an emphasis on designs and artefacts in two-dimensions (the Geffrye displays centre upon the three dimensions of the living room and the furniture within it), by an interest in the material culture and practices of working class consumers (the Geffrye makes clear its focus on the middle class home) and by an emphasis on the choices available to consumers in fashioning their homes (less the case at the Geffrye where a room serves for each period).