8 May 2017I Am Heath Ledger documentary prelude to October exhibitionThe extraordinary I Am Heath Ledger documentary premieres in Perth on 9 May at Luna Palace Cinema in Leederville, preluding the much anticipated exhibition about the life of the internationally renowned Perth-born star, Heath Ledger: A Life in Pictures. The world premiere of the documentary was held at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York last month, drawing worldwide acclaim and attention.Read more News Flora Perrella
24 Apr 2017New clingfish discovery shows value of museum collectionsA new genus and species of clingfish has been discovered on the shelves of the Western Australian Museum’s Harry Butler Research Centre. Western Australian Museum Curator of Fishes Dr Glenn Moore discovered the new clingfish with fellow researcher Dr Kevin Conway from Texas A&M University. “We came across two specimens of clingfish that had similar characteristics, yet unmistakably different from the other 160 known clingfishes,” Dr Moore said.Read more News Flora Perrella
30 Mar 2017Nature photography exhibition to show at the Museum of the Great Southern The finalists’ and winners’ entries for the 2016 Australian Geographic Nature Photographer of the Year competition will go on display at the Museum of the Great Southern next 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 stung by bloodthirsty mosquitoes.Read more News Sharna Craig
28 Mar 2017Exceptional Yurlmun exhibition ends soonAn exhibition featuring historic objects made by Albany’s Menang people nearly 200 years ago will soon return to the British Museum after being on display temporarily at the Museum of the Great Southern.Read more News Sharna Craig
23 Mar 2017Rare Night Parrot sighting in Western Australia welcomedThe Western Australian Museum welcomes the recent sighting of one of Australia’s rarest birds, the Night Parrot (Pezoporus occidentalis), by a group of bird enthusiasts in Broome.Read more News Mara Pritchard
14 Mar 2017Western Australia’s oldest car to go on display in YorkThe oldest surviving car of Western Australian provenance will return to York for the first time in 115 years. The Benz, on loan from the Western Australian Museum, will go on display at the York Motor Museum from Wednesday, 15 March 2017. WA Museum CEO Alec Coles said he is pleased the car will spend the next two years in York and that the Motor Museum will be able to share the car’s colourful history with its visitors.Read more News Sharna Craig
8 Mar 2017An ancient culture kept alive through artA new exhibition that brings to life one man’s remarkable journey to share his people’s culture with the world is going on display at the Museum of Geraldton from this weekend. Yidumduma Bill Harney: Bush Professor is a travelling exhibition from Godinymayin Yijard Rivers Arts and Culture Centre and celebrates the life work of Yidumduma Bill Harney. Museum of Geraldton Regional Manager Leigh O’Brien said Harney is a Wardaman Elder, whose country lies south-east of present-day Katherine in the Northern Territory.Read more News Sharna Craig
15 Feb 2017HMAS Sydney film wins international 3D film-making awardA 3D video experience featuring extraordinary underwater images of two historic shipwrecks obtained by Curtin University and the Western Australian Museum has won the Best-of-Show Live Action Category at an international conference honouring 3D innovation. From Great Depths 3D – Witnessing the Wrecks of HMAS Sydney (II) and HSK Kormoran was among 31 3D films showcased at the 28th annual Stereoscopic Displays and Applications (SD&A) conference 3D Theatre held near San Francisco recently.Read more News Sharna Craig
7 Feb 2017New Manager at the Museum of GeraldtonWestern Australian Museum CEO Alec Coles today announced Museum of Geraldton Senior Project Officer Leigh O’Brien is the Museum’s new Regional Manager. Ms O’Brien takes over from Catherine Belcher who has moved to a new role with the WA Museum based in Perth. “I congratulate Leigh on her appointment and I know that she will put her heart and soul into the Museum of Geraldton and the vibrant region it serves,” Mr Coles said.Read more News Sharna Craig
1 Feb 2017Celebrating colonial gold and silverAn exhibition showcasing rare 19th and 20th Century Australian silver and gold works will be on display at the Museum of the Goldfields from this weekend. Silver and gold: Unique Australian objects 1830-1910 is a travelling exhibition from the National Gallery of Australia that tells stories of personal, community and professional achievements through both ornate and functional objects.Read more News Sharna Craig
10 Jan 2017It’s a science wonderland at the Museum of Geraldton!Families can experience some fascinating principles of science and technology through a mix of interactive exhibits and hands-on experiments when the Museum of Geraldton hosts Scitech’s Science Wonderland from 17-21 January. Museum of Geraldton Regional Manager Catherine Belcher said Science Wonderland is a fantastic family program. “The younger ones will be able to play with light cubes, explore X-rays and discover how colours mix,” Ms Belcher said.Read more News Sharna Craig
16 Dec 2016New Director for Western Australian Museum Foundation The Western Australian Museum Foundation is today pleased to announce it has appointed Ms Jenny Allen as its new Director.Read more News Flora Perrella
15 Dec 2016RTRFM and the Western Australian Museum’s free live music series Harbour Sundays returns to the WA Maritime Museum in 2017After a stellar opening season that saw more than 1,500 local music lovers take in live bands, sunshine and panoramic views at the WA Maritime Museum, Harbour Sundays is back for another five weeks of free, live music in January and February 2017. Taking place on the balcony of the WA Maritime Museum at Victoria Quay in Fremantle, the second series will see five weeks of Perth’s premier musicians, running the gamut from folk, funk blues and reggae to bluegrass, Congolese dance, soul-funk and dub.Read more News Flora Perrella
9 Dec 2016Trapdoor spiders disappearing from Australian landscapeRecent surveys by Australian scientists have identified an apparent significant decline in the numbers of trapdoor spiders across southern Australia Famous for their carefully camouflaged burrows – some with lids or ‘trapdoors’ from which they launch themselves to catch their prey – trapdoor spiders are remarkable animals. The females of some species are known to live in the same burrow for more than 25 years. Read more News Sharna Craig
2 Dec 2016Rough medicine on the high seasRough Medicine: Life and Death in the Age of Sail opened at the Museum of the Great Southern today. WA Museum CEO Alec Coles said the exhibition explores the fascinating history of how illness impacted upon and even shaped early sea voyages from the 17th Century until the advent of the steamship in the late 19th Century.Read more News Sharna Craig
1 Dec 2016International Congress on Underwater Archaeology at the WA Maritime MuseumThe Western Australian Museum is pleased to host the Sixth International Congress on Underwater Archaeology (IKUWA6) at the WA Maritime Museum this week. Museum CEO Alec Coles said IKUWA (Internationaler Kongreß für Unterwasserarchäologie) is an independent, not-for-profit international network, and IKUWA6 is organised under the patronage of UNESCO and focuses on maritime archaeology.Read more News Flora Perrella
29 Nov 2016Beneath the Waves wins screen awardAn online interactive documentary created by the Western Australian Museum and production company Periscope Pictures, together with interactive experience developers Hungry Sky, has won a 2016 SAE ATOM Award. Beneath the Waves was announced as the ‘Best Educational/Training Video or Website (Primary/Secondary)’ at an awards ceremony in Melbourne. Western Australian Museum CEO Alec Coles said the Beneath the Waves is the culmination of six years of marine biodiversity survey work in the Kimberley and more than a year of digital production design.Read more News Sharna Craig
22 Nov 2016Spiders invade Elizabeth QuayThe Western Australian Museum will be displaying, playing and talking all things spiders – alongside a 50-tonne fire breathing spider at Elizabeth Quay this week. The Museum’s spider encounter will take place inside the WA Museum’s inflatable museum for Arcadia Australia. Arcadia – a spectacle of technology, performance, lasers and community activities – will make its Australian debut in Perth from tomorrow and thousands of people are expected to attend. WA Museum CEO Alec Coles said it is a unique opportunity for people to get up close and personal with spiders.Read more News Sharna Craig
4 Nov 2016Descendants of the VOC exhibition presented by Make Smoking History, opens in GeraldtonAn exhibition featuring exquisite photos and oral histories of indigenous people from Western Australia, Indonesia and Southern Africa who claim Dutch heritage through adventurers visiting their shores, opens this Saturday at the Museum of Geraldton (previously the WA Museum – Geraldton).Read more News Sharna Craig
2 Nov 2016Exceptional Yurlmun exhibition opens in Albany An exhibition featuring historic objects made by Albany’s Menang people nearly 200 years ago opens at the Museum of the Great Southern (previously the WA Museum – Albany) today.Read more News Jane Rosevear