Sharing Australia's greatest sporting stories

Australian Sports Museum redevelopment

Showcase of sporting memorabilia at the Australian Sports Museum. A digital touch screen sits in front of the showcase

When the Australian Sports Museum decided to refresh its public galleries, the aim was to reveal a new, whole-of-museum digital experience that combined many different and interactive experiences for their visitors. 

Following significant consultation between the Museum team and Art Processors, the agreed approach saw us integrate technology unobtrusively across the museum — from wearable NFC sweatbands that interact with digital consoles throughout the space to a post-visit experience that extends the visitor’s journey beyond the museum's walls. 

The solution has helped bring Australia’s greatest sporting stories to life in a way that all visitors can connect with, regardless of their age, background or personal interest in sport.

 

Services
Experience strategy
Interactive media
In-gallery interactives
Operation & content management systems
Data reporting & analysis tools
Partner

Australian Sports Museum

Location

Melbourne, Australia

Interior of the Australian Sports Museum with digital label touchscreens

Challenge

The Australian Sports Museum shares a spectrum of sporting stories—from the grassroots through to the elite, the light-hearted through to the thought-provoking. The Museum team wanted to connect visitors with these stories in a meaningful way while at the same time animating the Museum’s personality beyond the physical space. They wanted the digital displays and interactives to be more than an information source—becoming avenues to encourage discovery and personal connection, broadening the voices and perspectives represented in the museum and building lasting relationships with visitors.

A mother and daughter stand in front of a touchscreen at the Australian Sports Museum
Screenshot of a digital console at the Australian Sports Museum
Screenshot of a digital console at the Australian Sports Museum

Approach

We created an end-to-end museum experience that combines digital magic and interactive storytelling with the sporting themes of competition and teamwork in a playful way. We designed digital consoles that talk to and complement the physical displays and other interactive elements, including opinion polls and educational quizzes, and provide rich media and NFC interactivity. NFC-enabled sweatbands encourage visitors to collect and share elements of their visit, including photos, poll and quiz results and interactive gallery scores. We created a unique website connecting to this technology through which visitors can view and share their experience after they leave the museum.

A hand holding a mobile device showing information about the user's visit to the Australian Sports Museum

 

We came to Art Processors with a clear idea of not only how we wanted the new Australian Sports Museum to look and feel, but also how we wanted our visitors to engage with our stories and content. In working with Art Processors we brought this vision to life in a way that really suits the museum's personality.

– Helen Walpole,
   Museum Curator, Australian Sports Museum

Cricket is at the heart of Australian sporting culture. Watching replays of famous matches on the TV is one thing, but what if you could experience a moment in cricket history play out right in front of you using stumps lying around in your backyard? With augmented reality, this is possible — and something we explored as part of a prototype for an AR cricket experience.

Learn More
Render of batsman on cricket pitch

Solution

The consoles and NFC sweatbands bring to life the stories inside the museum, almost entirely replacing traditional printed information labels. These opportunities for interaction add a layer of playfulness, discovery and connection to the storytelling experience, working in collaboration with the whole digital ecosystem. The post-visit elements help the museum build lasting relationships with visitors and encourage repeat visitation.

Two children sit at a table at the Australian Sports Museum. They are wearing NFC-enabled sweatbands as part of the museum experience.

Further Reading

Over to you. What can we invent for your organisation?

Get in touch Careers

In the spirit of reconciliation, we acknowledge the many Traditional Custodians of Country throughout Australia and honour Elders past, present and emerging. We respect their deep, enduring connection to their lands, waterways and surrounding clan groups since time immemorial. We cherish the richness of First Nations Peoples’ artistic and cultural expressions.