About
The Multi-Arts Pavilion, mima (MAP mima) is a versatile space for digital art and performance in Speers Point Park.
This cutting-edge venue brings together art and innovation with an exciting program of exhibitions, concerts, performances and events throughout the year.
The first thing visitors will notice about MAP mima is the striking and unusual shape – designed to showcase digital interactive art works inside that opens out into a stage. The building is embedded and surrounded by public artworks including a play sculpture by artist Sanné Mestrom, an interactive soundscape, an augmented reality landscape and light installations. Inside is an immersive 360-degree projection space wtih artists creating new video works through a residency program and annual commission. MAP mima also hosts art and technology workshops and can be hired for private events.
Opening in October 2021 as Australia’s first permanent regional multimedia arts pavilion, this innovative cultural venue has had a whirlwind of activity. Discover more about MAP mima as it celebrates an incredible two years.
MAP mima is open Friday-Sunday with extended opening hours in school holidays.
The mima story
mima is an Awabakal word meaning ‘cause to stay’ signalling an intention that this venue become a site for the conscious intermingling of ancient and emerging cultural expressions.
The pavilion story
Lake Macquarie City Council, in partnership with the NSW Government, initiated the development of a brand-new arts venue in 2018.
The University of Newcastle was engaged through this partnership with architecture students invited to submit designs for the new building.
The vision was a unique and contemporary facility, a home to immersive and interactive multi-arts experiences. From a pool of 90 submissions, undergraduate student Samantha Bailey’s concept was selected as the winning design and the result is the Multi-Arts Pavilion, mima.
The building features a central gallery (the Cube) for exhibitions and large-scale multimedia experiences. The Cube includes a large hydraulic awning which opens to create a roofed staged area for live events in the park. Another distinctive element of the building is the Node: a trapezoidal projection screen in the leafy surrounds of Speers Point Park.
Since opening in October 2021, MAP mima has established itself as a key cultural hub home to immersive exhibitions, festivals, live music, theatre and major events. The lakeside venue welcomed more than 45,000 visitors to Speers Point in 2022.
The Multi-Arts Pavilion, mima was jointly funded by the NSW Government through the Regional Cultural Fund and Lake Macquarie City Council.
