Dubai: A different kind of museum is opening in Dubai in just about two weeks and it is expected to become the next mega attraction for tourists and residents, especially Instagram fans.
But there will be no Renoir paintings, artefacts or antiques to see. Instead, visitors can turn their world upside down, have fun and interact or revel in optical illusion exhibits.
The Museum of Illusions, part of an international museum chain that first debuted in the Croatian capital of Zagreb in 2015, is scheduled to open its doors to the public on September 12 at 2pm, and visitors are assured that they’re in for a “unique visual and sensory experience.”
The flagship attraction in Al Seef near the Dubai Creek will feature 80 interactive exhibits designed to play tricks on the brain.
There will be an exhibit called the Vortex Tunnel, a rotating cylinder that tricks the brain into thinking the ground under their feet is shifting.
In the so-called Ames Room, guests can either shrink or grow, depending on their position in the exhibit.
Or they can step into another room and watch and wonder as their world around them is turned upside down.
A dream for many social media fans, the museum will allow visitors to take as many photos as they can to document and share their adventure. Besides, this is part of the museum’s “distinctly unique etiquette” for guests.
The public is also encouraged to interact with the exhibits, making the visit more fun and exciting, and different from the traditional museums.
According to Varvara Svischeva, manager for the Museum of Illusions in Dubai, the exhibits have been carefully chosen to ensure the “widest possible appeal” to the “uniquely cosmopolitan residents and international tourists in UAE.
“We pride ourselves on being a destination for all ages and this is reflected in the diversity of exhibits and the overall experience,” Svischeva said.
“The human brain is an incredibly complex computer that perceives and interprets reality through an elaborate process of gathering information from each of our senses. When engaging with our illusions, the mind will combine some details and exclude others to create a sensory experience that defies logic. It’s always incredible seeing the universal human response to Museum of Illusions exhibits – it’s the same reactions all over the world.”
The Museum of Illusions first opened in Croatia in 2015. Six further museums opened across Europe and Asia, including Muscat, Oman.
Seven other outlets are scheduled to open this year, including New York, Toronto, Berlin and Dubai, set to be the largest edition to date.
