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    Kardinia Park Stadium

    Geelong Sports Museum

    CLIENT

    As part of the GMHBA Stadium redevelopment and new grandstand project, in Geelong, Australia,  the Kardinia Park Stadium Trust (KPST), in partnership with Downstream, has created a museum that honors Geelong’s vibrant sporting community. This engaging and inviting museum delves into the diverse and inspiring stories of sports in the Geelong Region, offering a fun, inclusive and immersive experience for visitors. 

    CHALLENGE

    The Kardinia Park Stadium Trust (KPST) aimed to create the Geelong Sports Museum as part of a new grandstand development at GMHBA Stadium to honor Geelong’s vibrant sporting community. Lacking artefacts, stories, or content, the challenge was to develop a multi-level museum environment showcasing the diverse sporting achievements and heritage of the Geelong region, while also enhancing the customer experience. 

    SOLUTION

    We designed a multi-sensory experience and comprehensive museum that delves into the diverse and inspiring stories of sports in the Geelong Region to offer a fun and inclusive visitor experience. Downstream transformed the space into a vibrant, immersive branding environment that highlighted the rich sports heritage of Geelong, making it a leading example of how space experience design can enhance cultural storytelling. They were also responsible for curating 100 artefacts, designing engaging digital and physical exhibits. 

    The museum features zones dedicated to Origins, Game Changers, and Community, where digital displays offer in-depth descriptions, and a CMS allows for easy updates and expansion of the museum. Alongside these are a flexible exhibition space, a theatrette, and immersive experiences like the Barwon River Rowers, Backpage Banter and Commentators Booth. 

    IMPACT

    The Geelong Sports Museum opened in June 2024, a space filled with artefacts, interactive displays, and educational experiences. The project successfully brought together the community, showcasing Geelong’s rich sporting history, fostering a sense of local pride, and honoring First Nations’ Peoples. 

    Downstream secured artefact loans and built a cohesive narrative around them, displayed with customizable digital screens that allow the museum to change and grow over time. More than your standard museum, it allows visitors to interact through rowing machines, commentator booths and touch-screen displays. The space now serves as an immersive and entertaining place for visitors to learn and immerse themselves in the history of Geelong sports. 

    DISCIPLINES

    Experience Design
    Concept Development
    AV/Technology Systems Design
    Brand UX/UI Design
    Research & Strategy
    Curation
    Concept Development
    Brand Strategy
    Environmental/Interior Design
    Front-end & Back-end Software Development
    Enviornmental Graphics
    Motion Graphics
    Museum entrance
    The museum entrance, located on the main stadium concourse, showcases the museum’s bold lozenge-shaped branding. Adjacent is a back-lit portal featuring artwork and a Welcome to Country by local Wadawurrung woman, Corrina Eccles. Downstream worked closely with Eccles to ensure a First Nations’ perspective and secure permissions for all indigenous imagery and references.
    The Theatrette is an informative and entertaining space, featuring a wide curved screen with a digital touchpad, allowing visitors to choose from archival footage, news reels, and documentaries about Geelong’s sports history.
    The Theatrette is an informative and entertaining space, featuring a wide curved screen with a digital touchpad, allowing visitors to choose from archival footage, news reels, and documentaries about Geelong’s sports history.
    Celebrating local rowing history and Geelong's coastal influence
    Celebrating local rowing history and Geelong's coastal influence, visitors are able to simulate rowing on the Barwon River. This PoV exhibit features footage from the river, directional speakers, and soundscapes, letting rowers track their speed and distance solo or with a friend.
    The commentator booth
    The commentator booth lets visitors live their dream of calling a sporting event, using real footage and a microphone to capture the moment, which can be shared on social media or with friends.
    The main gallery’s permanent collection has three zones: Origins, Game Changers, and Community
    The main gallery’s permanent collection has three zones: Origins, Game Changers, and Community.
    Geelong artefact wall
    Origin displays key artefacts with informative panels. Game Changers and Community artefacts are in high-quality TASHCO cases with curated images.
    Artefact wall
    Game Changers and Community artefacts are in high-quality TASHCO cases with curated images.
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