Barcelona-based collective Penique Productions has transformed one of Melbourne’s most iconic landmarks into a dreamlike sanctuary. Their latest project, MATRIA, is now on view inside the UNESCO World Heritage–listed Royal Exhibition Building as part of the 2025 Now or Never festival, running August 21st–24th. An immersive art installation unlike anything the city has seen before, it is already being hailed as a must see in Melbourne this year.
Immersive art installation reimagines a historic space
Inside the 19th-century Royal Exhibition Building, visitors step into a surreal, pink-hued environment that feels alive. MATRIA envelops the entire interior in a translucent, inflatable membrane that shifts with light and sound, transforming familiar architecture into something otherworldly. Penique Productions is known for site-specific interventions that use monumental balloons to reshape spaces, and here their approach creates an intimate, womb-like atmosphere—warm, protective, and strangely comforting.
The name MATRIA draws on the words “mother” and “motherland,” a quiet homage to ideas of refuge, belonging, and care. The installation is designed not just as a visual spectacle but as an emotional experience. By cloaking the building in a pink membrane that breathes and hums with sound, the collective invites audiences to pause, reflect, and unexpectedly reconnect with themselves.
Key features of the ‘MATRIA’ project
This immersive art installation spans the building’s vast dimensions—over 150 meters long and nearly 60 meters high at its dome. The translucent plastic material filters light into a uniform blush tone, bathing visitors in a surreal glow. Throughout the Now or Never festival, MATRIA also doubles as a performance stage, with electronic musicians, dancers, and sound artists activating the space in response to its acoustics. A program of breathwork sessions and late-night performances further expands the installation’s role as both sanctuary and stage.
Why it’s a must-see in Melbourne
With its blend of architecture, sound, performance, and pure atmosphere, MATRIA stands out as one of the most ambitious projects of the Now or Never festival. Free to the public and accessible to all, it offers a rare chance to experience Melbourne’s Royal Exhibition Building in a way few could ever have imagined. For anyone seeking inspiration, wonder, or simply a moment of stillness, this installation by Penique Productions is truly unmissable.
Photography courtesy of PENIQUE PRODUCTIONS