Exhibit Design Inspiration: The Twisted Films of PES

I'm not sure how I ran into the film work of PES, but there's something really great about their clever use of familiar household materials in new and creative ways to create their videos. The update to old-school stop-motion style is really appealing as well.

But don't just take my word for it, click on the example entitled "Fireworks" at the top of this posting, or zip on over to the PES website to discover the wide range of their film work --- just take in the eye-candy in small doses!

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The OUTSIDE Factor: A Great Exhibit Design Meeting In Brooklyn

Have you ever been in the middle of an interminable exhibit design meeting where you just wanted to slit your wrists out of boredom and frustration?

Well just a few days ago, I participated in an exhibit design meeting that was actually fun!

I was able to join some of the intrepid Liberty Science Center (LSC) staff on an informative (and tasty!) romp around Brooklyn. (We went to visit the Children's Garden at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Blue Marble Ice Cream, The Pickle Guys, and Taci's Beyti Turkish Restaurant.) And the best part is that it was all related to the exhibit design process for a project called Cooking: The Exhibition.

While a trip through Brooklyn with a food writer, in this case Arthur Schwartz, to visit different restaurants and food-centered sites was automatically going to be big fun, the biggest take-away for me was the OUTSIDE Factor:

1) The event took place OUTSIDE the LSC offices.

2) The event offered opportunities to learn from OUTSIDE people (Arthur Schwartz, restaurant and store staff.) At each stop, we could ask questions, discuss ideas, and get behind-the-scenes glimpses of how things happened.

3) Most importantly, the Cooking project has been inviting (actually encouraging) OUTSIDE ideas from anyone who joins their NING site. You'll also find design write-ups, grant submissions, inspirational websites, and notes related to the Cooking exhibition development process on the site as well.

While you might not be able to take in a food tour through Brooklyn, hopefully your can apply the OUTSIDE Factor to your own exhibit design process sometime soon.

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Exhibit Design Resource: Online Articles from NAME

Where can you find a treasure trove of FREE exhibit design articles online?

Thanks to NAME (The National Association for Museum Exhibition) there are now entire editions of their twice-yearly journal, The Exhibitionist, available online in downloadable, digital form.

The most recent issues are not available, since receiving the journal is a benefit of NAME membership (you are a NAME member aren't you?) Leaving that aside, there are some great articles on subjects ranging from exhibit RFPs to tips for prototyping to add to your exhibit design references.

Click over to the NAME website to check things out for yourself!

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Celebrate Independents Day and IMPs!

No, that's not a misspelling in the title.

Even though today is Independence Day in the United States, there are thousands of independent museum professionals (IMPs!) who can provide fresh new ideas, as well as valuable exhibit fabrication and/or design skills for your museum.

So why not seek out a local IMP to brainstorm ways to work together on your next project?

You'll be expanding your list of community resources and doing your part to help support the economy as well.

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Museums Worth A Special Trip: Summer Vacation Edition

Since we've entered the summer travel season here in the U.S., I thought I'd point out a few "Museums Worth A Special Trip."

This time around, here are three suggestions that combine fun, science, and the Great Outdoors:

1) Montshire Museum of Science The Montshire is one of those "gems" that everyone who visits considers their own little secret. In addition to creative and unique interactive exhibits, Montshire's building is surrounded by 110 acres of woodland and nature trails along the Connecticut River.

2) The New York Hall of Science. In addition to the hands-on exhibits inside, the NY Hall offers some wonderful outdoor activities as well. Joining the outdoor Science Playground this summer is Rocket Park Mini Golf. With two real NASA rockets looming in the background, Rocket Park Mini Golf reveals that the same laws of motion and gravity that guide the path of a spaceship control the motion of golf balls here on Earth. Playing off the retro styling of the 1960's (evoking the Hall's roots as part of the 1964 World's Fair) the nine-hole miniature golf course is gigantic fun!

3) Chanticleer Garden While not technically a museum, this charming "pleasure garden" just outside Philadelphia is filled with whimsical touches including a carved stone living room set (pictured above) and interesting pathways, bridges, and artworks that both complement and highlight the surrounding landscape and plants. Every single member of my in-house testing team wants to go back for another visit!

Have your own summer suggestions for Museums Worth A Special Trip? Let us know in the Comments Section below. Happy Trails!

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Electronic RFPs, Please.

I recently completed an RFP that requested six paper copies in addition to a digital version of the proposal. Why not just skip the multiple paper copies and eliminate the rigamarole involved with collating and FedExing and just accept electronically submitted PDFs?

It seems to me there are only two arguments against this modest proposal:

1) "Making people go through the process of preparing multiple paper copies of PDFs shows that they are serious about submitting." The previous statement is actually a paraphrase from a museum person, made when I suggested that electronic/PDF responses be allowed. I don't think I could summarize how mindless much of the PDF process is better than that.

2) PDFs of finished submissions with graphics and images will be too large to easily send electronically. Well that's a bogus excuse, and here's why: YouSendIt.

YouSendIt is a service that lets you easily transmit large files (up to 100 MB, using the free version) without any FTP hassles or email bouncebacks.

Even though a standard of Electronic RFPs might not happen anytime soon, you can put YouSendIt to good use in your own workstream today.

Don't miss out on any ExhibiTricks posts! It's easy to get updates via email or your favorite news reader. Just click the "Free Updates" link on the right side of the blog.

P.S. If you receive ExhibiTricks via email you will need to click HERE to go to the main ExhibiTricks page to make comments or view multimedia features (like movies!)