Creating the Heritage Centre exhibition space
Print- by Exhibition Curator, Jennifer Forest
I was given a clear vision for the Sisters of Charity Heritage Centre. The exhibition was to tell the story of the living and continuing work of the Sisters of Charity.
The key message was that the fourth vow – service of the poor – is everyone’s responsibility. It is at once both an individual action and a collective response to be carried forward by each of us, within the communities where we find ourselves.
Throughout the development of the exhibition, we worked steadfastly towards this vision, to inspire and provoke the exhibition’s visitors to carry on the fourth vow in their own lives.
As the exhibition visitors progress through the galleries, they learn of the work and experiences of the Sisters in living out the fourth vow.
The gallery spaces are grouped around the four content areas of Beginnings, Health, Education and diverse Ministries. In each space a range of historically significant objects, imagery, text, and technology tell the story.
It is at the digital immersive, though, that visitors are directly engaged with the reality of the fourth vow in Australia today.
This immersive blends filmed actors with an illustrated background in a digital animation format. Visitors play a character and help them navigate a series of pathways and choices.
It is a distinctive and unique storytelling experience designed to encourage empathy for fellow Australians living with disadvantage or in challenging situations.
Through the ten characters, disadvantage is mapped across Australia today by geographic region, age, gender, life stage, and socio-economic class. It is a snapshot of the challenges facing Australians today and the actions taken at all levels – individual, church, community, organisation and government – to be the agent of hope and love for those in challenging situations.