WA Museum Boola Bardip

16/06/2026

“What is femininity? Isn’t it empowering yourself, being whatever you want to be, chasing your dreams. If you want to be a footballer, why can’t you be a footballer?”

Jan Cooper heard all the reasons why women were not supposed to play football. It was too brutal, too physical, not feminine enough.

But football had always been part of her life, and it had deeply connected generations of her family. She grew up at Bassendean Oval, smashing her feet on the wooden floorboards when Swan Districts scored a goal, and loved to kick a footy with her brothers.

Despite her love of the game, she was never given an opportunity to play. Even as a young girl simply wanting to dress as a footballer for a fancy dress party wasn't allowed and she was told, "girls don't play football".

Instead, Jan turned her attention to other sports, playing elite-level cricket and volleyball, state league netball, basketball and swimming. Still, despite the sports being more accessible for girls, she didn't always feel welcome – enduring many disrespectful comments from members of the boys teams.

It wasn't until she was in her mid 30s that Jan discovered women's football existed. And from there, she went on a mission to build the opportunities she had missed out on herself, so no future generation would feel excluded from play.

Across more than 18 years in football, including as the AFL's national manager of women and girls' development, she helped grow female participation in the sport from 16,000 in 2005 to 500,000 by 2017 – a number that continues to grow with the AFLW competition providing more and more role models that inspire young girls to play.

In Playing with Passion: Breaking barriers in women's sport, WA Museum curators will share stories like Jan's, exploring the obstacles women faced and the work they did to ensure more girls and women could play the sports they loved.

Be there for the first bounce: https://visit.museum.wa.gov.au/boolabardip/playing-passion-breaking-barriers-womens-sport

12/06/2026

Ever wondered what lies behind the lab doors of the WA Museum?

Particle WA recently spent time with our Senior Preparator Kirsten Tullis and taxidermist Teori Shannon, looking at the careful, creative and occasionally very unusual work that helps bring Museum displays to life.

Take a read behind-the-scenes:

What lies behind the lab doors of the Western Australian Museum?

11/06/2026

When Joanne Huggins wanted to play football in the 1980s, there was no established women’s competition in WA.

So she placed an advertisement in the paper asking if other women were interested in forming one, and received 60 phone calls! Before long, there were enough players to form four teams across Perth.

Objects from those early years, including bumper stickers used to generate support, a State jumper and cap featuring sponsorship from controversial sources, and an off-field shirt highlighting the progression of sponsorship in the mid-2000s are now part of the Museum collection.

Collected through the Women in Sport project – which aims to expand the Museum's collection of sporting stories – they help share the changes, challenges and stories of women building a football culture despite limited resources and recognition.

Today is also International Day of Play, which celebrates the role of play in building confidence and community. For many girls and women, those things were never guaranteed. They had to juggle work and home life, raise funds, pay their own way, challenge opposition and make room for themselves in the games they loved to play.

You can hear these stories in our upcoming talk, Playing with Passion: Breaking barriers in women’s sport on Thursday 25 June, as curators Kylie Elston and Monika Durrer share stories from the trailblazing women who helped create opportunities for the next generation of girls in sport.

Read the full story: https://visit.museum.wa.gov.au/learn/news-stories/collecting-rise-womens-sport

10/06/2026

It's not always rude to stare 🫣

Studies have shown people only spend a few minutes looking at objects in museums. And sometimes, only a few seconds.

Slow Looking asks what happens when you stay with one object a little longer. When you let your eyes do the work, questions begin to form, perspectives start to shift, and the item you're looking at becomes more than a quick glance on your way to the next section.

The practice can help sharpen your observational skills, build patience and deepen personal connections away from the screen and the rush of everyday life.

Join writer Lisa Collyer for Slow Looking Club, a guided session inviting you to spend time with selected Museum objects and see what you notice when you stop hurrying.

Take a closer look: https://visit.museum.wa.gov.au/boolabardip/slow-looking-club

09/06/2026

Michael Malaxos Tsolakis OAM was just 16 when he left Kastellorizo for Western Australia.

His journey aboard the Esquilino took 32 days, arriving in Fremantle in 1938 before travelling to Kalgoorlie, where he began work as an apprentice tailor.

Michael went on to build a life that spanned countries, languages and careers. He served in the Australian Army during the Second World War, working as an interpreter and tailor around the state. After the war he continued tailoring, operating successful businesses in Perth for several decades, and helped family members migrate to Australia from Greece during the Greek Civil War.

At 65, Michael retired from tailoring and retrained as an accredited translator, continuing that work into his 80s. His language skills took him into courts, hospitals and community service organisations, and even to the Sydney 2000 Olympics, where he volunteered as a translator for the Greek water polo team.

In 2009, he was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia for his service to the Greek and wider Australian community of WA.

After Michael died in 2021, the Tsolakis family approached the WA Museum with a donation of objects that spanned every iteration of his life. Items including his Greek schoolbooks, Army helmet, tailoring manuals and tools, and mementos from his Olympic volunteering were accepted into the Museum Collection where they now tell the story of a life lived in good measure.

08/06/2026

🌊 Happy World Ocean Day!

Understanding our oceans begins with seeing what is happening below the surface.

From 16 June, we will be screening episodes of OceanXplorers, the National Geographic series produced by James Cameron – filmed aboard the OceanXplorer research vessel.

The series follows the scientists, filmmakers and crew using advanced technology to study life in some of the most remote parts of the ocean. The same real-world research explored in our newest exhibition, OceanXperience.

If you're curious about marine science, you have to check this out! See the full schedule: https://visit.museum.wa.gov.au/boolabardip/movies-museum-oceanxplorers-episodes

07/06/2026

Got a Kids Access All Areas voucher floating around? Put it to good use!

OceanXperience gives you the chance to explore a replica of the OceanXplorer research ship, explore Mission Control, move through the labs and try out the tech scientists are using to study the ocean.

If you previously secured a Kids Access All Areas voucher, you now have extra time to use it. Ticket purchases and rebate claims are now open until 31 May 2027.

Just keep your tax invoice and claim your rebate through the ServiceWA app.

The ocean is calling you: https://visit.museum.wa.gov.au/boolabardip/oceanxperience

05/06/2026

Ready for an evening Beyond the Sea?

Dive Bar returns June 12 with an intimate night of live jazz, cabaret and after-hours access to our latest exhibition OceanXperience.

Let Simone Craddock carry you away with her elegant charisma and warmth on a musical journey inspired by our oceans and coastlines.

Grab your seat: https://visit.museum.wa.gov.au/boolabardip/dive-bar

04/06/2026

“A state trip back in the late 90s cost about $30,000 to take 24 players over from memory.”

That's how Danielle Fagents remembers the reality of women's football in WA. Despite kicking the ball around with her brother since she was a small child, she didn't always feel like she belonged on the field.

She was the only girl at what is now known as Auskick, and didn't encounter other women who played football until after she left school.

Even then, passion only got players so far. Women had to pay their own way, covering the costs for uniforms, travel, accommodation and the chance to represent their State.

In Playing with Passion: Breaking barriers in women's sport, WA Museum curators will share stories like Danielle's, exploring the obstacles women faced and the creative ways they ensured they could keep playing the sports they loved.

Don't sit this one out: https://visit.museum.wa.gov.au/boolabardip/playing-passion-breaking-barriers-womens-sport

03/06/2026

🌧️ Welcome Makuru, the season of fertility.

It's time to rug up! As our seasons shift, we begin to see heavy rains, cold mornings and waterways filling up.

Traditionally this meant it was time to move inland, and food sources changed from sea to land.

It is also a season where animals begin to pair up in preparation for the coming season. If you turn your eyes to the sky, you might spot Wardongs (ravens) flying together or Mali (Black Swan) gathering on lakes and rivers as they prepare to nest and breed.