Brophy Family and Youth Services
Education
A collaborative response to youth disengagement in regional Victoria
Case Study: Museums Victoria
ProjectStation Pier: Gateway to a new life exhibition
Amount$100,000
Date2004
ProgramPast Programs | Arts and Culture
| TRUST OBJECTIVES | PROJECT OBJECTIVES |
|---|---|
| This grant was approved under a previous grants policy | |
| Building organisational capacity | Develop and deliver a unique permanent exhibition and accompanying education program. |
| Extending opportunity | Give voice to the living memories and post-war immigration experiences of thousands of Victorians. |
| Collaboration and partnership | Victorian Multicultural Commission, Ethnic Communities Council, Victorian Government, Visions of Australia, National Archives, Australian Customs Service, Victorian and National libraries, ethnic communities. |
Temporary exhibition becomes permanent museum feature after overwhelming response from Victorians
The universal story of departure, the excitement of the journey and the anxiety of arrival for post-war migrants presented emotive ways of celebrating Australia’s immigration history.
Image Visitors at the Immigration Museum's Station Pier exhibition. Photo: James Greer
Snapshot
- Station Pier: Gateway to a new life was an outstanding success. Launched in October 2004 and scheduled for 12 months, it was extended until mid-2010 due to such strong visitor interest. Today it has been incorporated into the permanent exhibitions at the Immigration Museum.
- Over 600,000 people saw the exhibition at the Immigration Museum and 100,720 people saw the travelling exhibition in cities and regions across Australia.
- Station Pier: Gateway to a new life was awarded the Museum Industry Recognition Award in 2005
- The exhibition recognised the life-changing decision to come to a distant and little known country. It narrated the hopes, fears, journey and arrival of post-war migrants to Australia, and the significance that Australian ports played in the cultural history of Australia.
- Through personal memorabilia, stories and heritage maritime collections, the evocative exhibition related a story for all Victorians about the significance of Station Pier as a gateway to a new life. It allowed people to reconcile loss of family networks, familiar environments and nationality, and celebrate new life, opportunity, growth and contribution.
- The exhibition included indigenous history and previously undocumented personal histories, and provided a link between many diverse communities and broader Australian history.
Website: museumsvictoria.com.au
“The project resulted in many firsts for the Immigration Museum. Today, the exhibition continues online for people to learn and share their stories which are a significant part of Australia’s migration history.” Padmini Sebastian, Manager, Immigration Museum
