Wonders of the Ocean, IFC Mall, Hong Kong

Globe Creative, IFC Mall, Hong Kong, 180 sqm  

‘Wonders of the Ocean’ aimed to bring a museum-like experience to the heart of premium shopping destination, IFC Mall in Hong Kong.

Exhibition producers Globe Creative organised the exhibition with collaborated with the curators of the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County and the Faculty of Science at the University of Hong Kong, to bring together a fascinating collection of real specimens and rare ocean fossils for the public  display. Studio Cassells was commissioned to design the exhibition, scope included concept, schematic, and detail design, as well as graphic design concept and assistance with on-site installation.

The design of the exhibition referenced an undulating sea floor throughout which the back-lit glowing specimens were displayed. Inset screens showed video content of the many featured creatures and sound-tubes amongst the displays offered visitors ocean stories narrated by conversationalist Karen Mok.

A wonderful array of full-scale underwater creatures populated the space above the exhibition, however the star of the show was ‘Cherish’, a magnificent 17-metre-long blue whale replica suspended in a weightless underwater dive spanning the full height of the atrium.  Multiple AR viewing stations on the second level of the atrium bought the whale to life, revealing animations of the whale species’ movement and feeding habits. At night the space was transformed into a tranquil underwater scene through moving gobo lights.