Quick Take: Finding The Spider

Did this ever happen to you?  You're at a zoo (or aquarium, or nature center, or museum ...) and you're trying to find a cool animal inside the tank or enclosure --- and then get frustrated because, try as you might, you can't see the darn thing that's supposed to be inside!

I saw a neat and simple (not to mention cheap!) solution to this problem recently inside the Spiders Alive! exhibition at the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) in New York.

The approach that AMNH takes (as you can see illustrated at the top of this post, and below this paragraph) is sticky notes!  Well, sticky arrows specifically.  It's easy and it's changeable (when the spiders move, docents or staff can move the arrows.) I can totally imagine printing larger (or slightly more elegant) arrows onto cling vinyl for larger enclosures at zoos or aquaria as well.

From a recent conversation with Museum staff, my understanding is that the arrows were originally placed on the spider tanks to help the folks who feed the arachnids to find the beasties more easily.

Staff at AMNH soon realized that the arrows made the exhibition experience better for visitors so they kept the arrows on the spider displays and have been using them ever since.


If you're in NYC in the near future, the Spiders Alive! exhibition is worth a special trip  (as you can see from my daughter's smiling face!)

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Worth A Special Trip: Children's Museum of Phoenix

Details and personality. Those are the two common threads that ran through my mind as I recalled my recent visit to the wonderful Children's Museum of Phoenix. You can tell that the people who work here and the people who visit here really love their museum.

So without further ado, let me take you on a little photographic tour and point out some of the details that really make this a museum "worth a special visit."  You can see many more photos of my Phoenix visit (and lots more of my own exhibit work photos!) on the Paul Orselli Workshop Flickr page.

As you might be able to tell from the photo at the top of this page, the Children's Museum is located in a historic renovated school building that once housed the Monroe School.  (Interesting bit of trivia: the artist Jackson Pollock attended this school when he was a child.)

I love museums that renovate and redefine existing buildings. Instead of starting with a "blank slate" (construction wise) everyone from architects to exhibit fabricators involved in a renovation project really has to enter into a sort of creative dialogue with the challenges and realities of the old space.  (Of course I'm biased since I've worked in museums that were once Victorian houses, fire stations, and historic aircraft hangars!)

A museum visit really starts from the time you park the car and enter the front door --- and here the museum starts off with a nice message by using solar panel structures in their parking lot:

and a BIG welcome as you approach the front door:

As soon as you swing past the large open admissions desk area you are struck by this huge, honking cool climbing structure:

 

It's funky, and like many things in the Museum it doesn't completely and immediately reveal itself to you. There are lots of questions that pop up as your eyes whiz around the structure, like "What's that flying bathtub over there?"

But of course the best way to find out is to get in there and start exploring! The Climber, like the vast majority of exhibits and activities in the Museum, really breaks down age barriers --- so kids (and adults!) of all ages really mix it up together and have fun.



Speaking of fun, which other Director of Exhibits do you know that has a real swing in her office (That's Nancy Stice showing off some of her non-traditional office "furniture."

It's clear (even down to the level of simple signs) that the Museum has a fun spirit, and doesn't take itself too seriously.  Here's a door sign on a currently unused classroom space:

and the toilet seat and faucet pipe signs that mark the restrooms:

The museum has also deliberately placed lots of comfy chairs around their spaces (instead of minimizing or eliminating seating as many museums do!)

A last nod regarding details --- check out the metal bead chain "water" running out of the faucet in this role-play area:

And last, but not least, in the Museum's "Art Studio" kids (and their adults!) can paint this cool rocket ship:

The activity is so popular, and such thick layers (artistic strata?) of paint build up over time that the museum has to "switch out" rockets and chip off the layers of paint (to be reused and recycled for making jewelry and other projects!)

All those little touches, and attention to detail, really add up at the Children's Museum of Phoenix. The sum total of those details and touches also send an important message to visitors: "we are having fun here and we want you to have fun here, too!"  And who could ask for more than that from a museum?



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Kid In The (Exhibit) Candy Store

As my daughter and I were wandering around the local drug store recently, I found some exhibit and prototyping inspiration:

Krank Pops!

Honestly who knows why some candy/toy designer wanted to create "An Action Lollipop" (with Sound Effect!) but both my daughter and I thought Krank Pops were cool and bought some.

After we got the Krank Pops home (and my kids ate up the lollipop part) we ended up with this:

a cheap and easy rotary crank mechanism to play around with for simple prototypes and exhibit ideas!   I certainly could whack something like this together myself, but there's a certain satisfaction in finding ways to repurpose familiar objects in unfamiliar ways.

One thing I often realize when I'm inside a drug store, or hardware store, or automotive parts store, or office supply store (see my previous post on becoming an Office Supply Ninja!) is that clever little ideas for prototype materials or exhibit design and development solutions often pop up in unexpected places.

So keep your eyes open for those unexpected finds  --- and don't forget to stop for the occasional Krank Pop!



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The "New" AAM?

Whatever.

7 Red Flags (or How NOT To Kill A Museum Project)

Why do some museum design projects succeed while other projects either spin their wheels for years or just crash and burn?

I've been thinking about this a lot lately since almost all of my current work involves "start from scratch" projects set up to create entirely new museums or installations rather than adapting or designing experiences for existing institutions.

One of these start-up projects in particular is operating under the long shadow of a recent design process that failed, and that left a lot of bad feelings (and canceled checks!) behind.  So now, in addition to working hard to create a successful new project, our design team is constantly beating back the ghosts of past mistakes in the minds of funders and stakeholders. 

One thing that's been helpful is to differentiate the parts of our creative process that are different from the previous "pain points" the client team and stake holders have experienced previously.  It really boils down to a few essential elements.

So here's a list of my seven "red flag" questions --- issues or attitudes that I really watch out for before I decide to join a project, or try to prevent from taking root during the twists and turns on the road to a successful project completion:

This Year's Model?
Are your design ideas based on community input with a mind toward project sustainability (economically, operationally, ecologically) or are you just chasing fads?  There was a time when every new museum seemingly had to open with an IMAX theater and/or a huge traveling exhibition space whether those business models made sense or not.

I love the Make(r) Movement but just slapping a "Make" sign on your old recycled art space because "Maker Spaces" are cool is a bit like putting old wine in new bottles, isn't it?   The true spirit of a sustainable and evolving Maker Space (for example) has to involve the work of connecting with local tools, people, and resources, not just latching onto the buzzwords.


Leggo That Ego?
Is one person's (or one group's) ego constantly driving the creative process?  There should be no shortage of strong opinions that get batted around during a project, but at the end of the day, are the final decisions that are being made project-oriented or personality driven?


Who's On Your Team?
Are the people in your project group "team players" in every dimension?  Do they respect each other? Do they truly want to engage the communities who will visit the museum?  Do they look for ways to creatively partner with other museums and organizations?  Or is everything a "we know best" situation?


What Does "World's Best" Mean?
I've written posts about this topic before.  It is great to set the bar high, but at least know what you're talking about.  What specifically would make your new museum "world class"?  If you can't meaningfully answer that question, you don't seem aspirational, you seem delusional.


Do You Really Need A Ferrari?
Do the design solutions you're developing really fit the project and the place where it's located?  I sincerely believe that every community should have great cultural institutions, but you don't build a Ferrari when a Ford will do the trick.  Find the right tools for the right tasks.


What's Under The Hood?
No prospective creative partner is perfect, but you owe it to your project to "check under the hood" a bit.  Ask your design team to describe a previous project that ran into a snag or two, and what steps they took to address and resolve the challenges.  If they can't come up with a credible answer or, worse yet, say that nothing like that has ever come up --- RUN! 

It's easy for everyone to be happy and excited at the beginning of a project when the schedule and budget seem great, but what happens when you all hit that first big pothole together?


Built To Last?
Let's finish where we started --- talking about sustainability.  Is your project built to last?  Are you creating true "internal capacity" (one of my favorite topics!) that will help your organization and your organization's employees and volunteers constantly grow and improve?  Or are you happy to throw your lot in with a bunch of "one stop shopping" hucksters who will promise to do all the hard work for you as long as you keep writing checks?  I can show you many new(er) museum that,  just a few years after they opened,  are sorry they made that choice.


Here's hoping there are many more "checkered flags" than "red flags" in your museum's future!

What do you think?  Did we miss any important "red flags"?  Let us know in the "Comments" Section below!



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