iPowerhouse ParramattaParramatta
A two-storey history of the shopping mall made with OMA*AMO, starting from Western Sydney: 1,350+ objects, from Steve Jobs's Levi's to dancing warehouse robots.
Preview: written before the show opened
A troupe of warehouse robots performs a ballet in Fulfillment in Progress, a new work by the artist yang02 made with the logistics company KNAPP. Elsewhere are the Levi's 501s Steve Jobs wore and Craig Johnston's prototype Predator boots, worn by David Beckham.
OMA*AMO designed and co-curated the show across two storeys and five architectural rooms: Arcade, Desire, Transaction, Ideal City and Forum. It starts from Western Sydney, where the first large transport-integrated Westfield opened in Blacktown in 1959, and runs from the 19th-century arcade to AI-driven retail across more than 1,350 objects. The archive of urban planner Victor Gruen is shown for the first time, and the Raindrop Fountain from Roselands is back, reimagined by Vert. If your teenage Saturdays happened at Westfield Parramatta, once Australia's largest mall, this is the museum version.
It is free and drop-in, except on 7 and 8 November, when you book a free opening-weekend ticket. It fills the Sir William Tyree Foundation Gallery on Level 2.
yang02, Fulfillment in Progress
An autonomous ballet of warehouse robots, developed with the logistics firm KNAPP.
Steve Jobs's Levi's 501s
A pair of the Levi's 501 jeans Steve Jobs wore.
The Predator boot prototypes
Craig Johnston's prototype Predator football boots, worn by David Beckham.
The Raindrop Fountain
The fountain from Roselands shopping centre, reimagined for the show by Vert.
Ayoung Kim, Dancer in the Mirror Field
The Australian premiere of Kim's animated speculative fiction film built around an annual competition, co-commissioned with M+ in Hong Kong.