WAM’s awards avalanche (incl Alec Coles

Western Australian Museum CEO Alec Coles.

Avalanche of awards for WA Museum including Alec Coles, Arts & Culture Western Australian of the Year 2021, WA Museum Boola Bardip, July 2021

Congratulations to Western Australian Museum CEO Alec Coles on this very prestigious and well-deserved award! Alec received it for his significant contribution to culture and the arts in Western Australia over his 11 years at the helm of the WA Museum, and his outstanding work leading the development of the new WA Museum Boola Bardip in the Perth Cultural Centre. It is fair to say that without Alec’s drive and determination it is highly unlikely there would be a new museum. Sustaining public and private support for a $400 million museum redevelopment over 10 years, through a global economic downturn and a pandemic, is an extraordinary achievement. Boola Bardip is an exceptional public museum. Open just seven months it has already welcomed more than 500,000 visitors, and has won 11 significant awards including:

Three MAGNAs:

Permanent Exhibition or Gallery Fitout for all eight new permanent galleries in the WA Museum Boola Bardip;
Interpretation, Learning and Audience Engagement for its six-year, State-wide engagement program which saw more than 54,000 people from across WA provide their thoughts about the stories and programs they wanted to see in their new museum; and
Research project entitled ‘Sharing Stories’ which was a collaborative effort by the Museum, CARAD (Centre for Asylum Seekers, Refugees and Detainees), eight Western Australians with refugee experience and two independent content creators. Eight short films were produced that explore what it means to be a refugee in Western Australia, and contributed to content in Boola Bardip’s Connections gallery, which is dedicated to exploring migrant issues.

Three WA Architecture Awards:

George Temple Poole Award, which is the top honour recognising excellence in architecture and the built environment in WA;
John Septimus Roe Award for Urban Design, and;
Jeffrey Howlett Award for Public Architecture.

Three Master Builders Bankwest Excellence in Construction Awards:

Best Government Building over $100 million;
Best Historic Restoration or Renovation over $100 million;
Best Public Use Building over $100 million.

Two WA Landscape Architecture Awards:

Award of Excellence for Civic Landscape;
Landscape Architecture Award for Cultural Heritage.

The WA Museum’s Chief Financial Officer Ravi Proheea also won the W. S. Lonnie Award for CFO of the Year, recognising excellence and accountability in the public sector.