Museums are significant employers and commissioners of artists, designers, writers, performers, scientists, technologists, and other creative practitioners. Across exhibitions, publications, digital initiatives, research, and public programs, the sector supports a broad ecosystem of cultural and creative work each year.
Our Wondrous Planet
Opened in September 2025, Our Wondrous Planet is Museums Victoria‘s largest science and biodiversity gallery with 1,800 square metres of permanent, immersive exhibition space at Melbourne Museum.
Delivering Our Wondrous Planet required more than two years of integrated work spanning conservation science, biodiversity research, First Peoples knowledge systems, multimedia production, interactive design, sensory environment design, and science communication. None of these contributions sit neatly within existing definitions of “cultural” or “creative” labour, yet together they have produced one of the most significant cultural experiences in Victoria’s recent history.
The gallery delivers across multiple dimensions: immersive environmental design that recreates four global biomes through light, sound and form; interactive digital experiences enabling visitors to traverse atmospheric currents and connect to underground root networks; story-led multimedia drawing on rare State Collection objects; and a dedicated collaborative space, Our Moment, which is designed to drive collective civic engagement with ecological challenges.
Our Wondrous Planet has been consistently rated as a visitor favourite since opening and extends beyond the gallery walls, connecting audiences to the Museums Victoria Research Institute’s active biodiversity and conservation programs, and providing pathways for citizen science participation. The project demonstrates that museums are not merely custodians of collections but producers of complex, high- impact creative and cultural experiences that serve broad public, scientific and civic purposes.
Source: https://museumsvictoria.com.au/melbournemuseum/whats-on/our-wondrous-planet/