When Dioramas Explode - “Animal World” at The National Museum of Scotland

It’s no secret that I don’t like traditional dioramas. But apparently I do like it when it looks like traditional dioramas have exploded and scattered animals throughout the exhibit. I like it a lot. Last week I visited the National Museum of Scotland. And it was a lovely, if somewhat predictable, experience until I got…

Un-Prompted Visitor-Contributed Content: An Example

While working on a new evaluation project with the Freiburg Museum Natur und Mensch, I’ve come across an interesting example of how un-prompted visitor-contributed content can work. In the temporary exhibit “Letzte Ölung Nigerdelta,” one room invites visitors to sit and watch a projected series of photographs exploring the social, economical, and environmental affects of the oil industry…

Tips for Developing Multi-Language Labels - Part 3

Be sure to read Part 1 and Part 2. Note: While I’ve divided these steps into sections, when you’re developing new language resources chances are that many of the tasks from Part 2 will happen concurrently with the ones in Part 3. Part 3: When It’s Time For Layout and Design (1) Use a Standard Order When labels will…

Inspiration - Icelandair (again)

Last year I wrote about how impressed I was with the interpretive moments sprinkled throughout Icelandair’s planes. When I traveled with them this month my admiration kept growing. These guys are good. Their little language and cultural stories are consistently interesting, quirky, and beautifully phrased, while still being short and snazzy. The world needs more interpretive signage…

The Tiniest Details

Just a quick reminder that, whatever you’re exhibiting, the details matter. Take this lovely necklace I found online: If you take the time to read the text behind it, some of the appeal disappears… Chicago pork packers in the 1850s had relatively limited options in utilizing the nonmeat portions of the animals they killed. They could boil them down…

Tips For Developing Multi-Language Labels - Part 2

Find Part 1 here. Part 2: When You’re Ready to Write (1) Identify Language Form(s) Once you’ve established your target languages and begun connecting with those communities, you need to identify the appropriate language forms. No language is neutral or only has one pan-global form. So will it be British or American English? High German or…

Tips For Developing Multi-Language Labels - Part 1

Since moving to Germany, I’ve developed a keenly-tuned English-language radar. No snippet - spoken or written - is too small to escape my notice, and I delight when I find them. Along with hunting for moments of my mother tongue, I’m helping create them. I’m involved in several projects exploring different ways to incorporate English…