Star Wars Identities: The Exhibition
Museum of Applied Arts & Sciences
Sydney, Australia
Now, Star Wars – there are fan-related events and exhibitions aplenty in all shapes and forms.
The opening night 2018 incarnation of Star Wars Identities was an exercise is stylishly curated events that generated the excitement that an exhibition of this calibre warrants. Mingling with trademark characters of the franchise, e.g. Ewoks, Storm Troopers, Darth Vader et cetera, weaved through the crowds and interacted with willing participants. The Imperial March signified the beginning of the proceedings of the exhibition that completes the troika of Star Wars events at the Powerhouse museum.
The interaction of Star Wars characters with the audience was more than a mere indication of the nature of Star Wars: Identities, as the focus is heavily on creating an immersive and engaging experience that goes beyond merely showcasing token artefacts, which of course make up the lion’s share of the exhibition and which can be examined in meticulous details.
Based on psychological and neurophysiological approaches, visiting the exhibition should let you emerge with the knowledge of which Star Wars identity you are and will become saved on the wristband that signifies your DNA.
Given the fact that the Star Wars franchise has been going for well over forty years, the exhibition is testament to the longevity and significance it still holds and the phenomenon it has become.
Equipped with an exhibition specific headset, one embarks on a journey that does not feel dated and has not lost any of its relevance – au contraire.
A facet of the over two-hundred-piece strong exhibition I found particularly interesting is how conceptual design and concept changes individual characters underwent before they became the pop culture icons they have established themselves at and that have been hardwired into peoples’ mind in a way that would make it difficult for them to imagine them in any different form.
The fact that the exhibition is pervaded with the quest for identity and a deeper exploration of what constitutes it along with the never not intriguing nurture versus nature dispute based on the foundation that is the Star Wars cosmos, gives the exhibition an edge that makes it enticing even for the hardcore aficionados that have seen it all.
