Curiosity Room

Mount Field National Park, Tasmania
Interpetation design for Mount Field Visitor Centre

Client: Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service
Concept, writing and project coordination: Fiona Rice
Design and illustration: Alex Miles
Collaborators: Trish Hodge and Jack Maynard (aboriginal content); Luke Dineen (timber bench seats); Petra Meer (additional illustration); Jordy Davis (Videographer)

A space for exploration and discovery at Mt Field Visitor Centre – designed to encourage visitors of all ages to ‘look deeper into nature’ and spark curiosity through an interior interpretive space that is almost entirely wordless. Film, sound, light and tactile objects provide sensory references to be consciously or subconsciously recalled when the visitor is outside, with a focus on visual rather than written content. Highlights include an installation of temperate rainforest tree species with animals, birds and insects and colourful fungi to find. A suite of playful discovery benches offer more on Mt Field’s mammals, birds, undergrowth and geology, and a large window graphic introduces visitors to the local night creatures. An evocative film loop captures the creation of the national park from its icy beginnings, and an accompanying handbook takes visitors deeper, describing the works and stories within the room.