Islamic Museum of Australia
Melbourne, Australia
2022
The Australian Muslim History Gallery digital upgrade at the Islamic Museum of Australia was an opportunity to celebrate the interplay of physical artefacts and their digital augmentation, with face-to-face interactions with notable Muslim personalities within the wider community and myriad moments of self-discovery and visual abstraction. Our process involved aligning curated museum content to the web and local curricula, as well as creating immersive digital displays and environments within the existing architectural constraints. We placed an emphasis on revealing and celebrating the perhaps lesser-known contributions of Muslims to Australia’s history and its continued success in an increasingly complex multicultural world.
As with all our designs, Arterial began the process through a meeting onsite to establish relations with the IMA and survey the existing site condition, which allowed our team to discuss potential opportunities and interventions that would respectfully align with the curatorial team’s ambitions and visions for the space. These initial meetings described to us the visitor usage (or lack thereof) throughout the space, and what they found difficult or wasteful in the gallery. Through the establishment of a concrete return brief to the client, we were confident in our shared visions for a new immersive space.
It is Arterial’s fervent conviction that this updated gallery becomes a beacon for the uncovering and reclaiming of histories once hidden – a powerful social impact amplified by the accessibility of the museum both online and in-person.