29 Nov 2017Securing the foundations The New Museum building is starting to take shape and the first concrete slab expected to be poured in early 2018. In preparation for this work, Multiplex and its subcontractors are drilling pilings to support and stabilise the new building. Read more News Erika Jellis
23 Nov 2017Batavia's mysteries unfold with discovery of mass grave An international team of archaeologists, including scientists from The University of Western Australia and the Western Australian Museum, has discovered a new communal grave in the Abrolhos Islands, the result of deaths after a shipwreck of the Dutch East India company ship Batavia.Read more News Mara Pritchard
13 Nov 2017Exhibition highlights build-up of plastic pollution on beaches and in oceans A thought-provoking exhibition about the build-up of small scale plastic rubbish on Western Australia’s beaches and the wider issue of waste on the world’s oceans opens at the Museum of Geraldton this week. On the Beach by artist Tim Pearn, documents a year in which Pearn collected more than 1,600 pieces of washed-up plastic while on his regular walks along just one beach in the State’s south.Read more News Flora Perrella
10 Nov 2017Help save our frogs with your mobile phoneKids, mums and dads, amateur scientists and community groups are being asked to pick up their mobile phones and head into their backyards and beyond to help save Australia’s native frogs. The Western Australian Museum is partnering with the Australian Museum and other museums around the country as part of FrogID – a major citizen science project which explores where frogs are at risk and how to conserve them and our waterways. Frogs are one of the most threatened groups of animals on Earth.Read more News Sharna Craig
8 Nov 2017Exhibition tells of historic relations between the ANZAC and Belgium during World War OneAn exhibition that tells shared stories about the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps, or ANZAC, and Belgium during World War One is now open at the Museum of the Great Southern. The Great War in Broad Outlines pays tribute to the sacrifice of the ANZAC, and is a reminder that Belgium is forever grateful and continues to honour the fallen. Museum of the Great Southern Regional Manager Rachael Wilsher-Saa said the exhibition depicts defining moments and memorable battles of World War One.Read more News Sharna Craig
8 Nov 2017Traditional art meets modern technologyAn exhibition celebrating the stories and Law of Anangu culture through intricate carvings and artefacts will go on display at the Museum of the Goldfields next weekend. Punuku Tjukurpa is the first touring exhibition of artworks from the Maruku Arts archive based at Mutitjulu, near Uluru in the Northern Territory. Museum of the Goldfields Regional Manager Zoe Scott said Punuku Tjukurpa, presented by Artback NT, showcases a rich sacred history.Read more News Sharna Craig
7 Nov 2017Research noting impact of climate change on native species graces cover of prestigious science journalResearch which notes the impact of climate change on the evolution of Australia’s native bilbies and bandicoots has featured on the cover of the prestigious Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. The article was authored by the Western Australian Museum’s Mammals Curator Dr Kenny Travouillon. “Climate change has been a very important factor in the evolution of bilbies and bandicoots, placing a selective pressure for survival in a harsh, arid environment,” Dr Travouillon said.Read more News Sharna Craig
26 Oct 2017Working together in the Kimberley WA Museum Curators Michelle Broun and Stephen Kinnane and Community Engagement Officer Barbara Paulson attended last month’s Kimberley Aboriginal Law and Culture Centre (KALACC) Festival at the invitation of KALACC’s Board of Directors. The trip followed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the WA Museum and KALACC. The MOU outlines a commitment for the two organisations to work together to engage with Aboriginal peoples from the Kimberley and identify ways local stories could be shared in the New Museum.Read more News Erika Jellis
23 Oct 2017Strong cultural connections and a multimillion dollar partnership A multimillion-dollar partnership agreement has been signed between Tianqi Lithium Australia and the Foundation for the WA Museum. The $5 million agreement is a significant contribution to the Foundation’s endowment program, Discovery Fund, and has secured Tianqi Lithium Australia with naming rights for the Connections gallery in the New Museum for WA.Read more News Erika Jellis
20 Oct 2017Awesome fragile ocean homes Just near Coral Bay, in the Gascoyne region of Western Australia, in the crystal-clear waters of Ningaloo Marine Park is one of the world’s most amazing reefs. More than 500 species of brightly coloured fish make their home in coral reef ‘cities’. Because they are so close to shore, they are at risk from human activity.Read more News Erika Jellis
16 Oct 2017Traditional shell-stringing exhibition coming to Museum of the Great SouthernThe Museum of the Great Southern is proud to host a national touring exhibition about shell-stringing; one of the Tasmanian Aboriginal Community’s culturally significant and closely guarded traditions. kanalaritja: An Unbroken String from the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (TMAG) features a variety of beautiful, delicate and rare shell necklaces, created by Tasmanian Aboriginal Ancestors in the 1800s, acclaimed makers of today, as well as a new wave of stringers.Read more News Sharna Craig
27 Sep 2017Exhibitions taking shape Exhibition designers Thylacine Design and Freeman Ryan Design are working closely with our team to develop the New Museum exhibitions. Since their appointment earlier this year (see Innovative exhibition teams to design WA's stories) the design concepts for each gallery space are emerging.Read more News Erika Jellis
25 Aug 2017Western Australian Museum fieldwork aims to make first live observation of rare snail Western Australian Museum scientists are in Geraldton looking for a land snail so rare it is presumed extinct. Bothriembryon whitleyi, commonly known as Whitley’s Tapered Snail, has never been observed live but shells collected recently indicate live specimens may exist. They were collected in the Geraldton area earlier this year and indicate living populations are likely. WA Museum Technical Officer of Molluscs Corey Whisson said a field assessment of the species is needed, and winter is the best time to undertake one.Read more News Sharna Craig
31 Jul 2017Incredible museum exhibitions to open this spring! Dinosaurs, Pompeii and Heath Ledger headline a spectacular suite of exhibitions to be presented by the Western Australian Museum this spring at a range of venues.Read more News Flora Perrella
26 Jul 2017Astrofest exhibition returns to Museum of Geraldton as part of National Science WeekA stunningly beautiful astrophotography exhibition will be on display at the Museum of Geraldton from 28 July – 10 September 2017. Since its inception in 2009, Astrofest has become one of the largest science events in Western Australia, and is the only astronomy event of its kind and scale in Australia. The festival is an Astronomy WA event and is coordinated by the International Centre for Radio Astronomy Research. A highlight of the festival is the astrophotography exhibition, which is curated by Dr John Goldsmith of Celestial Visions.Read more News Sharna Craig
3 Jul 2017Art and fossils combine to reveal now extinct bilbies and bandicoots Beautifully detailed artwork depicting bilbies and bandicoots that inhabited Australia millions of years ago will go on display this week at the Western Australian Museum’s Discovery Zone, in the State Library of Western Australia.Read more News Flora Perrella
30 Jun 2017Western Australian Museum wins two IPAA AwardsThe Western Australian Museum and its partners have won two prestigious achievement awards presented by the Institute of Public Administration Australia (IPAA), for excellence in outstanding collaborations that delivered extraordinary cultural experiences around significant Western Australian stories.Read more News Flora Perrella
28 Jun 2017Nature photography exhibition to show at the Museum of the GoldfieldsThe finalists’ and winners’ entries for the 2016 Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year competition will go on display at the Museum of the Goldfields this weekend. A remarkable image of an orange-eyed tree frog (Litoria chloris) won the competition. Piercing Headache by Matthew McIntosh of Queensland captures the male frog being bitten by bloodthirsty mosquitoes. Museum of the Goldfields Regional Manager Zoe Scott said she hopes the exhibition’s visitors will be inspired by the beauty and intricacy of our natural world.Read more News Sharna Craig
15 Jun 2017Innovative exhibition teams to design WA’s stories Freeman Ryan Design (FRD) and Thylacine Design and Project Management awarded exhibition design contracts Australian exhibition design teams will work with WA Museum staff to develop engaging exhibitions and visitor experiences Exhibition design program developed in parallel with new building Western Australia’s extraordinary landscapes, environment and the stories of its people will be translatRead more News New Museum Project
31 May 2017New exhibition at the Museum of Geraldton reveals Western Australia 50 years on from the 1967 ReferendumIt has been 50 years since the 1967 Referendum where Australians overwhelming voted to amend the constitution, allowing Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples to be counted in the census, and to be subject to Commonwealth laws rather than an array of state laws. Voters recorded the largest “yes” vote – 90.77% – in any Australian referendum. However, on a percentage basis, Western Australia cast the lowest “yes” vote at 80.9%.Read more News Sharna Craig