Storyworld: first museum dedicated to visual storytelling

Visual storytelling has become the essence of communication in our world today. From the first cave paintings to the latest games played by billions of people in the world, narrative art has been at the core of humanity. Today, animation and games are the two biggest selling cultural expressions in the world. Designing a museum about this theme was like a dream come true for the NorthernLight creative team. NorthernLight was responsible for concept development, spatial and visual design and creative direction for this amazing project.

It is kind of fun to do the impossible’ – Walt Disney

Storyworld, the first ever museum dedicated to visual storytelling, combining comics, animation and games, opened its doors in Forum Groningen in January 2020. This young, vibrant and interactive museum unravels the secrets of great storytellers and shows Dutch and international masterpieces in the field of comics, animation and games. From Asterix and Aladdin to The Red Turtle and Horizon Zero Dawn. Storyworld is a place where visitors young and old can dive into the art of visual storytelling.

Meet the makers, discover what happens behind-the-scenes and then do it yourself.  Storyworld immerses visitors in in the best works in the field of visual storytelling. From classics to work by upcoming talent, from visual artists to large game studios with international success. Unique original drawings and storyboards from amongst others, Lion King, Olivier B. Bommel, Despicable Me, Shrek, Ice Age, Aardman Studios and The Red Turtle are part of the collection. Visitors are inspired to become creators themselves; be part of a comic through a green screen, design a character, record sounds effects for an animation or create an atmospheric environment for a game. Through motion detection visitors can digitally paint on the walls and in the stop motion atelier visitors can make their own animation come to life. Spatial design of the museum was inspired by the white page that every story starts with; every idea, every character, every superhero once started with a pencil line on a blank sheet of paper. It is a recurring theme throughout the museum.