Well another month has passed and we are safely working back in the office 4 days a week and we are another month closer to our beautiful New Museum opening its doors. The Foundation Team has responded well to the unusual circumstances thrown at it as a result of COVID-19 and we are back to business as usual: I’m also very pleased to report that the WA Museum Team have likewise responded to the challenges of the virus and they will deliver the New Museum to open on time in November this year – just under 4 months away!! The Project Team and Curators are working furiously to finalise designs, exhibits and all that will make this icon something special to the people of WA.
The Premier, along with Arts Minister David Templeman MLA, announced last Friday that the New Museum will officially open on Saturday 21 November and that a nine day “opening festival “ will run which includes first access entry to the Museum ensuring as many West Australians as possible will be able to see their Museum as soon as possible. Information on securing tickets to the opening festival will be released in the coming months by the WA Museum, so please stay tuned and we will keep you across all details around celebrations and activities as they are released.
The State’s unique cultural and scientific collections will come alive with innovative new exhibits, activations and digital technology exploring subjects such as the formation of the Universe, WA’s latest inventions, extinct dinosaurs, newly discovered species, WA’s local communities and our greater role in the world. As the internal galleries of the WA Museum take shape, there is a wave of excitement to see this labour of love finished and open for all to enjoy and see.
Featured are eight major permanent galleries which are all multi-disciplinary. The Museum has been developed with a People First approach with more than 50,000 people being involved in consultation processes focusing on accessibility, inclusion, education, children and young people. Woven throughout the Museum are stories and perspectives of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, recognising the primary rights of Australia’s first peoples in practicing and expressing their cultural heritage. The venue will be a place for sharing ideas, promoting discussion and debate about our past, present and future, discovering nature’s diversity, transforming landscapes, climate change and will feature highlights from the State’s Collections – thus ensuring that your visit will be exciting, entertaining, participatory and informative.
Designed by international architect consortium Hassell + OMA, and built by managing contractor Multiplex, the new Western Australian Museum will reopen on the same site it has occupied since it first began as a Geological Museum in the Old Perth Gaol in 1891 with it being more than three times the size of the previous structure.
I’m pleased to report that we are well on our way towards our target for the Discovery Endowment Fund of $35 million committed funding. This will provide long-term funding to the WA Museum, ensuring that world-class exhibitions can be attracted to come to Western Australia, that there are funds to procure important and relevant artefacts for the State’s Collection and to support the Museum’s many scientists and researchers in their important work. Naturally, I would love you to contact me or the Foundation Team if you would like to get involved in supporting our amazing New Museum to achieve its goals and be recognised as a global icon.
Please stay safe and to continue to wage-war on this pandemic. I know you stand alongside me and my Team as we wish our fellow countrymen all the very best, especially those State’s experiencing the sadness of human loss and extreme health issues at this time.
Warmest wishes to everyone,
Jenny
[email protected]
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