The National Museum of Australia (NMA) in Canberra has launched two new galleries as part of its biggest redevelopment since it opened more than 20 years ago.
Costing the museum $34 million, the redevelopment has taken over one-third of the building and includes the new Great Southern Land environmental gallery and the Tim and Gina Fairfax Discovery Centre.
The NMA said the Great Southern Land gallery was an exploration of Australia and the history of the continent, displaying more than 2,000 objects in what the museum described as a "rich multi-sensory experience".
The collection ranges from a 2.7-billion-year-old stromatolite from the Pilbara in Western Australia, a collection of inventive bush toys made by Arrente children in Central Australia to a 4.5-metre taxidermic saltwater crocodile.
The collection at the Great Southern Land gallery also includes relics from natural disaster-affected towns around Australia— a steel electricity pole, bent and twisted by winds of Cyclone Tracy in Darwin in 1974, and a payphone from Cobargo, New South Wales when bushfires swept through in 2019.
Immersive experiences at the gallery also include replicas of trees from a Queensland rainforest, sound and light shows and a chance to "swim with a platypus" in an interactive experience.
National Museum Director Mathew Trinca said launching the two new galleries was a pivotal moment in the history of the museum.
"I am thrilled to see the years of hard work and planning come to fruition in the incredible Great Southern Land environmental gallery and the remarkable Tim and Gina Fairfax Discovery Centre," Mr Trinca said.
"The National Museum is celebrating more than 20 years of engagement with the Australian public and these new developments will see it go from strength to strength in the decades ahead."
Connecting to country
National Museum Council member and Indigenous Reference Group chair Fiona Jose said the Great Southern Land gallery showcased connections between First Nations Australians and the country, with the inclusion of certain artefacts and stories from across the nation.
"Stories of how First Nations peoples have belonged to and cared for country over countless generations are woven throughout the gallery," she said.
"This new gallery shows how Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge of this ancient continent is a heritage all Australians can draw on, and key to meeting our shared responsibility to heal and nourish the land."
Alison Page is a descendant of the Walbanga and Wadi Wadi people of the Yuin nation and is an Indigenous curator at the Great Southern Land gallery.
As an artist who also has an interactive work in the gallery, Ms Page said she felt the pressure to encapsulate Aboriginal stories in a new way.
"We are only just starting to give voice to Aboriginal people and their connection to country," she said.
"Aboriginal people see country like it is a family member.
"We love, care and cry for country and we want to make films that inspire all Australians to care, worry and love country like we do."
Ms Page also added that the gallery opening came at a time when Australia and the world needed to hear the stories of Indigenous Australians.
"We are facing major climatic changes that Aboriginal people have survived and they survived because they designed a society where country was in the middle of [that society]," she said.
"Australia can look to these stories of Indigenous peoples and design a society where country is at the heart of all of us."
'Fun, immersive play space'
The museum's new Discovery Centre is described by the NMA as a "fun, immersive play space", for children up to six years old, their carers and families.
The NMA said the purpose of the Discovery Centre was for children to explore Australia, its stories and its inhabitants.
A bunyip, Chris the sheep, Gelam — a boy who transformed into a dugong, and Trim the cat — who circumnavigated Australia with explorer Matthew Flinders, are among the characters that children are able to follow through the museum.
Discovery Centre manager Carlie Walker said the space was designed to inspire and intrigue its young audience.
"The elements in the space spark curiosity and promote creative play to foster a love of learning about diverse Australian stories, from an early age," she said.
"The space features meaningful stories of creation, transformation, exploration and imagination from the deep past, First Nations cultures and local history."
The Discovery Centre will open for a day of free booked sessions on Friday, September 16, before opening for paid booked sessions on Saturday, September 17.
There will also be a free public access day once a month.
