Source : PERTHNOW NEWS
The nation’s oldest museum is aiming to inspire new generations as it marks an impressive if sometimes troubled 200-year history.
The Australian Museum on Saturday revealed full plans for its bicentennial displays in 2027 – Officially March 30 – including a drop-in from the world’s biggest dinosaur.
Director and CEO Kim McKay said there was a lot to mark for an organisation steeped in scientific tradition, while reckoning with its colonial past.
Importantly, the museum was revamping its offerings for a “drastic” rise in visits from children and an evolving information landscape, she said.
“Young people come here, and I see the spark of curiosity that’s ignited within them when they see something new and ideas flow,” she told AAP.
“We have to face up to our past, and I can’t change the past, but I can change the future here.”
Ms McKay said reliable information was core to the museum’s continuing role in Australian society.
“We’re here just to present the facts as we know them and the science behind that,” she said.
“I think that’s something people can rely on throughout their lives.”
Ms McKay also welcomed the opportunity to acknowledge historical practices that would be considered unacceptable today.
“Many of my predecessors … were involved in those practices where Aboriginal people were treated and studied as fauna,” she said.
“Museum practice for 150 years was unacceptable in today’s terms.”
“In our collection, we do have hundreds of Aboriginal ancestors that we’re now repatriating back to their country where we can.”
She said the institution had to confront its past while changing how it worked with First Nations communities, which now lead research, displays and programming involving their cultural heritage.
A new First Nations exhibition, Message Sticks, will feature in the 2027 anniversary program, while a dedicated gallery for truthtelling is expected to open in early 2028.
McKay said the museum also wanted to inspire younger generations, describing how children visiting the institution could develop a lasting curiosity about science and the natural world.
Celebrations for next year’s 200th Anniversary begin next month, on November 28, with the world’s biggest dinosaur – 38m long – destined for a stay in the museum’s exhibition hall.
The Patagotitan Mayorum will arrive with 16 Patagonian friends.
David Attenborough’s one-hour, 360-degree immersive Our Story will be screened outside of Europe at the museum for the first time in 2027.
The Message Sticks exhibition will be incredible, Kim McKay said, while 2027’s April festival will allow patrons a behind-the-scenes look at the extent of the Australian Museum’s collection.
Established in 1827 and steeped in British and European Enlightenment tradition, the Museum claims to be the fifth oldest of its kind in the world.
The Crown helped establish the public museum with a 200-pound annual commitment and a mandate the museum display the rare and curious specimens of natural history.
The institution previously operated under Sydney and Colonial Museum titles, until it was renamed the Australian Museum in 1836.
