PASSATA
POST WAR MIGRANT HOUSING

BLOG POST

In the northern suburbs of Melbourne, lies this family home. It’s a home that embodies the resilience and cultural richness of our migrant heritage and typifies a building style succinct with the post-war period when Southern Europeans began to migrate and introduce their culture, food and of course coffee! 

At any certain point of the last 60 years, this home has housed four different generations from one family: The Greatest Generation, The Silent Generation, Baby Boomers, and Millennials. It’s a home to migrants from Sicily who every year* keep with tradition and make passata from scratch.

The style of housing is a blend of cultural elements and is often characterized with multiple kitchens (the passata pictured here was made in the garage kitchen), formal front gardens with productive fruit and vegetables in the rear, balconies with white balustrades (reminiscent of Venice), brick-veneer or weatherboard construction and large windows (often shuttered, acknowledging the similarities with the hot dry Australian sun to back home). Depending on the background of the migrant, throw in a few columns and lions too! 

For many Australians, it may not be a style or culture you’re familiar with, but for those who grew up with it, it’s simply Nonna’s / Yia-Yia’s / Baba’s house. It’s a style that represents an important chapter in Melbourne’s cultural history, showcasing the contributions migrants have made to Melbourne.

*Note: Every year except for the great tomato drought of 2023.