Museums Victoria

On Wednesday the 23 October, we held our inaugural Museums Victoria Awards, celebrating the excellence of staff members from across the organisation. The Awards were centred around each of Museums Victoria’s values, and how our dedicated staff create, communicate and embody the vision we want to achieve, transforming it into a reality. We were also delighted to be joined by the Minister for Creative Industries, the Honourable Colin Brooks MP, as he introduced and awarded our Rising Star Award along with Mary Stuart, President, Museums Board of Victoria. With more than 3.7 million attendees across our sites and experiences over the last year, we thank our staff for creating these moments of wonder. This night was an excellent opportunity to recognise and honour that. We are so proud of our staff and their ongoing commitment to the values and vision of Museums Victoria.

Host your end-of-year event at one of Melbourne’s iconic cultural venues. 🌟 Did you know Melbourne Museum and Immigration Museum are available for event bookings? Plus, guests at all new events between 1 October and 31 December 2024 will receive a complimentary cocktail on arrival. Delight your group with a stylish event space that draws from Museums Victoria’s rich history, collection and exhibitions. Dine with dinosaurs at Melbourne Museum for an unforgettable experience. Or celebrate 2024 with cocktails in the sun-drenched courtyard at Immigration Museum. Enjoy premium packages courtesy of Museums Victoria’s exclusive catering partner The Fresh Collective. All events feature support from our expert operations team. So you can relax, knowing they will deliver a memorable event experience. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/exbm9d8H

Today, we’re overjoyed to celebrate the 24th anniversary of Melbourne Museum's reopening!    After leaving the State Library Building back in 1997, we moved into our new home in Carlton Gardens, designed by Denton Corker Marshall.    Over the years, we’ve continued to build on our rich history to become a leading cultural destination, world leader in research, educator, cultural collaborator and a community space to celebrate First People’s living cultures. Each and every day, we remain committed to delighting our visitors with award-winning exhibitions and experiences.     Over the last year we welcomed a 66-million-year-old fossil, Victoria the T. rex, we saw 300,000 visitors jump on board the Titanic, we hosted renowned ethologist and environmentalist Dr. Jane Goodall, and tens of thousands of visitors enjoyed a new interpretive experience in the Forest Gallery - Biik Milboo Dhumba | Country is Always Talking, featuring the artwork of Robert Michael Young.     Looking to 2024 and beyond – in December, we launch a groundbreaking multi-sensory digital experience at Melbourne Museum: Antopia. And we continue to work hard in connecting the past and present - supporting a vision for a brighter, more sustainable future. 

We’re excited to be hosting Top Designs 2025 at Melbourne Museum! Applications are now open. Students of VCE Media, Product Design and Technologies, Systems Engineering, Visual Communication Design, and VCE VET Creative and Digital Media, Engineering Studies, Furnishing, Integrated Technologies, and Music (Sound Production) can apply. Applications close for VCE studies on Sunday 20 October 2024, and for VCE VET studies on Monday 11 November 2024. Register now and the VCE Season of Excellence team will send you a reminder when the deadline is approaching. We look forward to seeing your work! Application forms are available on the Top Designs webpage. https://brnw.ch/21wNoVZ

We are very pleased to announce that Science is a Superpower has won the Moving Image Award at the AMaGA Australian Museums and Galleries Association National Awards 2024. Our online video series, Science is a Superpower is designed to build interest and confidence in STEM among a tween audience. Through vibrant visuals, contemporary illustrations and hands-on experiments, Science is a Superpower strives to redefine how museums present STEM content. This award recognises Museums Victoria’s commitment to using innovative digital storytelling to inspire the next generation of STEM leaders, reinforcing our mission to make science engaging, inclusive and impactful for all. To all our incredible colleagues and collaborators involved in this exceptional project, and of course our wonderful host Holly Ransom, we extend our heartfelt congratulations. Our thanks to all our viewers. We invite you all to keep sciencing, and learn more about the world around us with Science is a Superpower. 🔗 https://brnw.ch/21wMLQo

Meet Rahman – the extraordinary human who is a cornerstone within our diverse team at Museums Victoria. Mohammed Abdur Rahman, or ‘Rami’ to his friends is a veteran who was deployed to Maliana, Timor in 2000. We know Rami as our trusted and much-loved colleague. With a warm, beaming face he welcomes visitors to Immigration Museum. He loves engaging visitors young and old in the importance of Australian history, and we are very proud to know him. His story though, is an immense one. After migrating from Bangladesh in the 1980s, he served in 6th Battalion of the Royal Australian Regiment and later the Army and RAAF Reserves until 2009. One fateful night in 2000, his team, the 6th Battalion of the Royal Australian Regiment, were based in Aidabasalala when they were attacked by militia during the night, hounded with grenades and semi-automatic fire. In the aftermath, Rahman recorded 500 photographs and eight hours of video, and later created a United Nations Peacekeeping Exhibition, for which he was nominated for the UN Media peace prize. He is now shrine governor at the Shrine of Remembrance. Over the weekend, the miracle of Rami’s survival was published by the Australian Associated Press, and it’s a truly inspiring read: https://lnkd.in/g6X_Jhbb He travels to Canberra this week for a national commemorative service on Friday 20 September which marks the 25th anniversary of Australian service in Timor-Leste. Rami absolutely loves Immigration Museum and believes fully in our shared humanity. He’s a brilliant storyteller with a great many stories to tell, so say hello to him next time you visit.

Museums Victoria is proud to celebrate Wear It Purple Day. 💜 Wear it Purple Day is an annual LGBTIQA+ awareness day that focuses especially on support for young people, ensuring that there is a place for them to feel safe, included and empowered. Originally founded in response to the tragic loss of young lives due to bullying and lack of acceptance of their sexuality or gender identity, Wear it Purple Day has become an integral movement of celebration and support. At Museums Victoria, we are committed to ensuring that all members of the community and our staff feel welcome, respected and supported in our spaces and safe to express themselves freely. As an ally of the LGBTIQA+ community, today we stand with rainbow young people; you are seen, supported and respected and we acknowledge your right to proudly express who you are and who you are becoming. Tonight, we are joining other buildings around Victoria, and will illuminate the Royal Exhibition building in purple to support the day.

We are thrilled to share that Titanic: The Artefact Exhibition has won the People’s Choice Award Best Museum Exhibition at the Time Out Arts & Culture Awards 2024. The inaugural Time Out Arts & Culture Awards celebrate the best of performing and visual arts and culture here in Melbourne, and this public voted recognition highlights the resonance of the captivating human stories shared in this incredible exhibition. We are grateful to Visit Victoria, E/M Group and RMS Titanic, Inc for all their support in bringing this exhibition to Melbourne Museum as an Australian exclusive. Our special thanks to the 300,000 visitors who came to share this memorable exhibition with us during our sold-out season. To all our incredible colleagues and collaborators involved in this exceptional project, we extend our heartfelt congratulations.

Creative Victoria is seeking expressions of interest from people with skills, experience and interest in potentially joining one of Victoria’s creative industries boards. Applicants of all ages, women and people from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people from regional/rural areas, people with disability and LGBTIQA+ people are encouraged to apply. EOIs closes on 31 August 2024. 🔗 Learn more: https://lnkd.in/gpqx4ZJ3

Today marks the 20th anniversary of the Royal Exhibition Building World Heritage listing. 🎉 First opened in 1880 to host Victoria's first international exhibition, this iconic building has played a pivotal role in Australia's political, economic, and social history. This landmark has long been a significant venue, hosting the first Federal Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901, serving as a training base and barracks for the Australian Air Force during World War II, and even showcasing competitions during the Melbourne Olympics in 1956. On 1 July 2004, the Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens became the first Victorian place and the first built heritage site in Australia to be recognised as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This legacy endures today, with the building remaining an architectural and cultural icon of Melbourne, hosting major festivals and events, and welcoming visitors on tours to enjoy the views from the famed Dome Promenade. 🔗 Learn more about the history of this incredible building.