Adam Koszary, the social media editor at the Royal Academy of Arts, London, observed, “museums have become used to being masters of their own spaces, but on the internet we need to embrace the fact that we are one voice among many." Virtual exhibits should invite visitors to create new content and share their creations with other visitors. It makes exhibits more engaging and helps visitors connect to the content.
As an exhibit developer, my job is to create exhibits that engage visitors. In order to effectively do my job, I need to know who my visitors are. Unfortunately, few museums understand their in-person audiences and even fewer institutions profile their virtual visitors.
Museums are undergoing a metamorphosis. Historically, museums have been primarily physical spaces. However, in response to the wave of COVID closures, an increasingly large number of museums have been creating virtual exhibits. Unfortunately, most virtual exhibits are not serving visitors.
Hebru Brantley’s Nevermore Park schools both museums and instagrammable pop-ups on experience design.
The Chicago Museum Exhibitors Group (CMEG) Fall 2019 Meeting There is a dynamic relationship between the design of a museum space and the content presented in it. When an exhibit’s space changes, the presentation of the content has to adapt to fit its new environment. At the fall 2019 Chicago Museum Exhibitor’s Group Meeting, we... Continue Reading →
On September 9, 2019, The International Council of Museums (ICOM) will vote on whether to adopt a new definition of “museum.” With 40,000 professionals in over 141 countries, ICOM is well positioned to foster a new international consensus on the definition of a museum.
The back entrance to Art of Native America On my last visit to NYC to see my parents, my mom and I headed to the Met to check out the Art of Native America. I was particularly excited to see this exhibit because it is the first time that the Met has displayed Native American... Continue Reading →
An Interview with Exhibit Developer Meredith Whitfield The Field Museum’s T. Rex SUE is a fossil and Twitter personality who has captured the hearts and imaginations of millions of museumgoers. In December, the Field opened a new exhibit for SUE, which received rave reviews. To get the inside scoop on this incredible exhibit and to... Continue Reading →
Have you ever overheard a museum professional make a statement like, “while I know it's important to make sure wheelchair users can get around, the wide aisles really interrupt the flow of the space.” However well-intentioned, statements like these miss the power and importance of making museums welcoming, inclusive, and accessible. At the most recent... Continue Reading →
On June 14, 2018, the Chicago Museum Exhibitors Group (CMEG) met to explore the final frontiers of museum technology and to discuss strategies for successfully incorporating technology into museums. We met at the Illinois Holocaust Museum and Education Center where we tried out the museum’s artificial intelligence (AI) experience. We also heard about a new virtual reality... Continue Reading →
American Perceptionalism 