I’m not always the biggest fan of dioramas. For me, most have always been a little too dark, a little too static, and just never sparked my imagination the way they do for so many others. I appreciate dioramas. I value the role they play in museums, and I am in awe of the skill…
I’ve been spending many hours working in the paleontology exhibit of my local museum this week. Possibly too many. Today I kept substituting the German name for The Big Bang - Urknall - for the English name of everyone’s favorite highwater-pants sporting nerd. On the first day, Urkel created the universe.
Even when you’ve dressed inconspicuously, perfected the art of watching people out of the corner of your eye, mastered the skill looking like a student working on a school project, and basically become the awesome-sleuthy offspring of James Bond and Harriet the Spy… There will still always be one security guard who hasn’t met you,…
How do you share your museum’s data? Charts? Lists? Memos? Newsletters? Why don’t you turn all that delightful data into an infographic and… Organize your information in logical and attention-grabbing ways Simplify how you define and describe yourself Embrace color! Share the results of a survey in a new way Market an upcoming event or…
The caption in a Wikipedia article on Xoanon: Synthesizing the Lady of Ephesus as Diana Aventina: a Roman marble copy of a Greek replica of a lost Geometric period xoanon (18th-century engraving). An engraving of a copy of a replica of a sculpture. Apparently museums come by the tradition of reusing other people’s good ideas honestly. [Thanks to intrepid world-traveler Patricia Walker, who…
As museums continue to demonstrate their coolness, moving away from the traditional object alarms is inevitable. I predict we’ll go in one of the following directions:
How do people see images of your institution? Your website? Promotional flyers? Other people’s vacation photos? Are the images ordinary? Beautiful? Edgy? What mood, tone, and attitude do they convey? Is it the one you want? What if you design a museum lookbook and… Show off your museum from a new angle? Use evocative images to…
From last night’s episode of Bob’s Burgers: “Carpe Museum.” I suspect Bob’s Burgers has some former museum workers on their writing staff. They know our world too well. Visitor Motivation: The Sands from Exotic Lands exhibit is my favorite. Last year, when I got home, there was sand in my crack. It was hands-on learnin’…
How do you tell your community about your exhibits? Are you opening a new exhibit? Do you have an existing exhibit you want more people to visit? What if you create an exhibit trailer and… Preview your new exhibit to the world? Re-envision and remind visitors of the great exhibit you already have? Make something busy and exciting? Quiet…
I’ve been to a lot of quiet museums lately. Is your museum quiet? Does it need to be? What if you… Create soundscapes in your spaces? Urban sounds? Nature sounds? Other languages? Play music in the galleries and exhibits? Different styles on different days? Create harmonious experiences? Create cacophonous experiences? Create musical audio tours? No…
Museums Askew 