00:03I know, not up there, down here.
00:06I told you there were lots of mirrors around.
00:08Morning, team.
00:11Yeah, very tricksy.
00:13Good thing I wore pants today and not shorts.
00:15I had been keeping a close eye on what's going on here in Barramatta at the powerhouse.
00:21Opening today to the public for the first time, I've been able to run around this place like an absolute
00:26child.
00:27A kid in a playground and all thanks to the senior curator of this exhibition, Jack Babington.
00:35Jack, thanks so much for making this.
00:37And actually, right on time, what is this that we're standing in front of?
00:41So this is an incredible work by a Thai artist, Tor Lapp Lapp Jaran Sook, and it's called Vihaseyan.
00:48It is a replica of Voyager 1's space probe.
00:52Voyager 1!
00:53So for those that don't know, Voyager 1 is the human thing that is the furthest away from Earth.
01:01That's right.
01:01And in exciting space news, on the 18th of November, Voyager 1 will be one light day away from Earth
01:09after travelling for nearly 50 years.
01:11Jack, you know all of the things that make me, make me literally tingle.
01:15That is incredible.
01:18Okay, planners, we need to get on to that.
01:20I didn't realise that was happening so soon.
01:23What does a curator do here at the Powerhouse?
01:26A curator does research, exhibition making, talking to the public, education, a whole lot of things.
01:34How do you go about doing it in a brand new space?
01:38Okay, so I assume they say to you, hey Jack, we've got this space, we want you to make an
01:43exhibition, we're thinking maybe something along the lines of space.
01:46What's your first move?
01:48You assemble a really highly specialised team of curators, of conservators, of exhibition delivery people, of installers.
01:57The executive team has also played a massive role.
02:00We've got some really terrific artistic advisors who have come in and let us really imagine what this exhibition could
02:07be.
02:07You see, that's the thing about the Powerhouse.
02:09It's not just that you've gone through the archives and the collection to see what's loosely related to space.
02:15I mean, there's amazing, beautiful artworks as well.
02:19How do you go about commissioning or finding those pieces that would work in this place?
02:23Lots of research and lots of networking.
02:26There's 850 objects in the exhibition.
02:29Whoa!
02:29Yeah, a lot.
02:30That is a heck of a lot.
02:32Do you have a favourite?
02:34I know you're probably going to say, like, no, I love all my children equally, but is there something that
02:37really gets you going when you're standing in front of it?
02:40I think the James Terrell Shangri-La over the hump, which is a light-based experience at the pinnacle of
02:46this enormous tower that we've constructed with open architecture from Beijing.
02:51It's really, it provides the framework for the exhibition and a journey up into space.
02:58Which I've been enjoying all morning.
03:00Also, okay, take me through, how do you get your hands on stuff like, say, the Lady Gaga costume that
03:07she wore in paparazzi or a Captain Kirk uniform that you wore in, what was it, Star Trek 4?
03:14How did you get them?
03:16So, we write, we introduce the idea of the exhibition to collections and organisations and private individuals, mostly internationally in
03:27that particular Thierry Mukulaya case.
03:30And then we talk to them about what our aim is, and also the exciting new audiences here at Western
03:38Sydney who really need to see this stuff in Australia.
03:41It's incredible.
03:42I couldn't believe that I got to lay my eyes on it.
03:44Does it make you nervous, though?
03:46You have the Moogler.
03:48You have the Captain Kirk uniform.
03:50I mean, that's a lot of responsibility.
03:54It is a big responsibility, but we are just so excited.
03:58This has come together in the most thrilling way.
04:00And, yeah, the doors open really soon.
04:03So, we're pumped.
04:04Super, super soon.
04:05I just, one last one for you.
04:07For people who are coming in here, is there something you want them to find?
04:10Some little tiny thing that they should be keeping an eye out for that might blow their minds that they
04:15might not have expected?
04:17I think we have hidden some gems throughout the exhibition.
04:22And we literally, curatorially, we call them gems.
04:24And they're little tiny objects that take the mind on a different flight trajectory.
04:30So, look out for them.
04:32They're hidden in the architecture.
04:33Jack, congratulations on your work in this space.
04:36I mean, it has genuinely been fun.
04:38I haven't had to even try to ramp it up.
04:41It's beautiful.
04:42It's engaging.
04:43It's interesting.
04:45It's a testament to your work.
04:46Well done.
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