This rotating exhibit highlights the changing nature of stardom in pop culture. How do we decide what joins the canon and what is temporary? In 2025, pop music is at the forefront- Chappell Roan's rise to stardom lets us pay attention to displaying queer artists, further exemplified by the display of the Jobu Tupaki costume from Everything Everywhere All At Once. The recent cultural memory is interspersed with longstanding ones. What are some iconic television shows that immediately come to mind? Through this exhibit, we showcase MOPOP's acquisition strategies and the decisions taken to ensure the holistic representation of pop culture artifacts. Game of Thrones and the Power Rangers are both iconic TV series from different parts of the world. Pop culture is global, as a museum, it is our role to display and care for it.

Artists: Chappell Roan, Stephanie Hsu, Power Rangers, Robert Baratheon, Uncredited prop makers and costume designers

A supporting piece for the upcoming Asian Comics: Evolution of an Art Form exhibition, Call for Cosplay is an exhibit dedicated to displaying cosplay as an artistic form. Call for Cosplay invited two professional cosplayers from the Pacific Northwest to showcase their work in an exhibition space.

Steph Piper's Oscar Jarjayes piece investigates the techniques of gender performance in Anime by utilizing elements from the 90's show, The Rose of Versailles, in creating a cosplay that is both true to story and shows off the artist's various skills. Kitkatwombat's Yukari Hayasaka piece, however, focuses on the materials of storytelling. Built from household items, as well as coincidentally found fabrics, the cosplay boasts a 10ft long train and over 5000 hand-sewn glass beads, a testament to the care and effort fans undertake, which often goes unnoticed. This show places this effort front and center, encouraging viewers to rethink the labor produced in their own fan experiences.

With works by 2 community-oriented cosplayers, the show spotlights talent, DIY, fandom, and how perceptions of being fans differ within communities. The show is accompanied by a curator-led discussion about the role of Cosplay in fan communities and artist interviews.

Artists: Steph Piper, Kitkatwombat

Originally showing props from Jordan Peele's US, this Cabinet of Curiosities replaces masks with (more!) masks. Paying homage to the first inhabitants of the case, the Purge masks reflect on the importance of covered faces in the horror genre. The eerie not-quite-human smile on the Face of God mask, and the shards of shattered glass on the Reflective mask reinforces the role of the propmaster as an artist.

Artists: Hala Behmet, Uncredited prop makers

The labour of fan communities gets unnoticed when we think about high fantasy. Fans are the ones often bringing the characters to life, by their own volition. They create arts and crafts, interpreting stories visually even before illustrators get officially commissioned to interpret. This exhibit, curated with the consulting of author Robin Hobb, celebrates fans. Displaying postcards, an embroidered bag, and memorabilia presented to the author by fans during her travels, The Fans of Robin Hobb shows visitors the creativity and community of being in a fan community.

The exhibit also displays souvenir coins and the Gemell award received by the author, helping us question the role of fans in popularizing the author's work, and the power of fans to shape creative careers.

Artists: Marc Simonetti, multiple uncredited fans

A timely exhibit of props from the 2024 Wicked movie that displays the craftsmanship behind their creation. Props play a crucial role in storytelling but can often be forgotten when engaging with films. Through this exhibit, visitors are encouraged to look closely at the materials that make up the props. Are they what one expects?

The level of detail that goes into prop development, even for objects that will not be seen closely by the public is meticulous. This exhibit offers a rare glimpse into the unseen props that film productions create, and their varying levels of preservation over time. Props were not created to last forever; at institutions like MOPOP, the team consistently grapples with questions of preserving new materials.

Artists: Mutiple uncredited artists and prop makers

This interactive exhibit was curated alongside the Seattle Art Museum interpretation team to let visitors gain new understandings of Ukiyo-e (Japanese Woodblock Printing technique). The exhibit contains a series of elements from Katsushika Hokusai's woodblock prints and lets visitors create their own woodblock prints and add it to a digital exhibition. Building on MFA Boston's extensive Hokusai collection, this exhibit supports the Hokusai: Inspiration and Influence exhibition by enegaging visitors about common elements that printers would carve, and the process of putting it together. This exhibit serves as an educational guide to the woodblock printing process.

Artists: Katsushika Hokusai