In an age marked by ecological collapse, technological acceleration and social upheaval, the latest science-art exhibition at Science Gallery at the University of Melbourne explores how we adapt to a world in flux.

Installation view of *Tuengel* by Dr Wang Zhigang at Xiamen International Design & Art Week (2025). (Lubin Bai, 2025)

From living vertical farms, fungal fashion, coral soundscapes, the speculative future of biotechnology, to AI-driven political experiments EMERGENCE[Y] invites the audience to reflect on how we might survive and thrive amid planetary transformation.

A central feature of the exhibition is a major new commission by renowned Australian artist Patricia Piccinini, created following a year-long residency with Science Gallery Melbourne which included time immersed in the stem cell research laboratories at the Murdoch Children’s Research Institute. Piccinini’s new sculpture revisits her seminal early work, Still Life With Stem Cells on its twenty-fifth anniversary. The project is part of the Hope Springs Eternal transnationalcollaboration with Medical Museion, Copenhagen, Rijksmuseum Boerhaave, Leiden. Supported and funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation Center for Stem Cell Medicine, reNEW, exhibits at each gallery have been designed in collaboration with scientists to engage audiences with emerging stem cell research.

Other highlights include:

A lush vertical farm created by Greenspace and Faculty of Engineering and IT researchers offering visitors and school-groups the opportunity to experience how sustainable food systems can be integrated into urban life, with fresh produce grown and harvested on-site.

A collection of fire-resistance, non-combustible speculative garments created by Australian designer and academic Alia Parker using a composite of mushroom mycelium (the vegetative component of fungi) and post-consumer cotton textile waste.

The Australian premiere of Tuengel by Dr Wang Zhigang, professor of Information Art & Design at the Tsinghua University in Beijing, a video installation constructed from e-waste that immerses visitors in a post-apocalyptic electronic wasteland where humans, animals and intelligent machine life forms coexist among the ruins of obsolete technology, prompting reflection on the balance between technological progress and ecological sustainability.

tele-present wind, created by US artist David Bowen in collaboration with the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory that uses data collected from the wind sensor on the Perseverance Mars rover.

An interdisciplinary art and science project that explores how the soundscapes of healthy coral reefs can aid in reef restoration. Created by German artist Marco Barotti, Coral Sound Resilience is rooted in the principles of acoustic ecology, with the sound sculptures formed from his work being permanently embedded in damaged reefs around the globe.

The exhibition has been curated by Science Gallery Head Curator Tilly Boleyn, with input from a team of academic experts and young people.

“This exhibition serves as a profound reminder that adaptation is both a biological necessity and a creative endeavour. EMERGENCE[Y] invites us to explore the interconnectedness of all life and imagine how we might thrive collectively in a rapidly evolving world.” Boleyn said.

Science Gallery Melbourne Director Dr Ryan Jefferies said that the exhibition could not be more timely.

“EMERGENCE[Y] encourages us to confront the pressing realities of our time in an increasingly turbulent world. It’s an invitation to step into a future where creative and intercultural collaborations inspire hope and foster resilience.”

EMERGENCE[Y] opens to the public on 6 June and closes 5 December 2026, with a special preview event on 5 June as part of RISING. Join us to explore what a critically reimagined future might look like.

Media enquiries:

Katrina Hall
+61 421 153 046
kathall@ozemail.com.au

EMERGENCE[Y] broadcast: Exhibition coming soon