Cyclone Tracy (2024)
exhibition / book / audio

In 1974, Darwin got a whole lot more for Christmas than it was expecting. With news of a cyclone hovering off the coast, no-one was too concerned. After all, another cyclone had passed by just a few weeks before. But then Tracy took a turn and changed the course of a city. Small but deadly, Cyclone Tracy tore Darwin apart, damaging 80% of housing. It led to the largest evacuation and relief effort in Australian history.

The Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory has been the home of the Cyclone Tracy story since 1994, when its much-loved permanent exhibition was opened, a form of memorial for the 66 people who died. 

Co-curating the project, it was completely redeveloped ahead of the 50th anniversary to wide community acclaim featuring a crushed re-created Torana painted by its original owner,  Tiwi interpretation mural from Mary Elizabeth Moreen, re-developed sound booth, 1970s weather bureau office,  searchable death and evacuation lists, survivor audio  stories and accompanying publication building on ten years of research.

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Site: Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory, Darwin NT

Collaborators: Co-curated with Jared Archibald OAM, Paige Taylor and the team at MAGNT

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More: www.magnt.net.au/cyclone-tracy

Selected media: New Cyclone Tracy exhibition opens at MAGNT ahead of 50th anniversary, ABC News

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Photos: Georgina Campbell, Nicole Ogilvie, Caddie Brain