Forget rope barriers, glass cases and “do not touch” signs, at the brand-new Micro Museum young (and young-at-heart) visitors to the Museum of Brisbane can get their hands stuck into a colour-filled, creative series of immersive experiences and interactive activities. Pint-sized curators are encouraged to create their own collections from a huge range of vintage treasures, inspired by MoB’s upcoming Precious exhibition.

Opening just ahead of the school holidays on Saturday March 22, Micro Museum will be a permanent addition to the Museum of Brisbane, offering interactive entertainment for curious minds all-year-round, plus special holiday activities like collages, badge-making and toy creation.

Visitors can select, sort, arrange and present their very own curated collections from a huge range of mini, vintage and second-hand treasures inspired by the upcoming Precious exhibition, showcasing pieces relating to Brisbane or collected by locals. Using multi-sensory categorisation – by colour, material or texture to form and function – kids can create the story of their collection and play at being a museum curator for a day.

School holiday daily activity details:

Monster Mashup
Dates: Saturday April 5 to Monday April 21
Times: 10:00 am – 1:00 pm daily
Tickets: Free
All ages
Using images of objects from the Precious exhibition and Micro Museum, tap into your wildest imagination and mix and match pictures to create a hybrid collage of a whimsical creature.

Precious Punk Badge Studio
Dates: Saturday April 5 to Monday April 21
Times: 10:00 am – 1:00 pm daily
Tickets: $2 for one badge; $5 for three badges
All ages
Taking a cue from Malcolm Enright’s badge collection showcased in the Precious exhibition, design your own protest badge using magazines and craft materials.

Crafty Movers Workshop
Dates: Wednesday April 9 and Wednesday April 16
Times: 2:00–3:30 pm
Tickets: $20
Ages: 10–17 years
Inspired by the vintage windup toy collection, enjoy a short, guided Precious exhibition tour followed by a workshop to craft and construct a moveable toy using simple automaton principles.