A year ago we started work on a 15,000 square foot start up Science Center.  Most Science Centers cost approximately $350-$500 per sq. ft. (see 2011 exhibition cost survey).  This Science Center had neither the time nor the budget to go through the typical museum design process; prototyping, value engineering, fabrication and installation process.  I suggested an “off the shelf” process.  We would create schematic designs of the areas of the science center, create a storyline for each area, suggest several iconic exhibits, create an a color palette, then go and look for new or used existing exhibits that would work within the developed frame work.  Using this methodology, we set a budget of $1.2 m for 15,000 square feet ($80 per square foot).  For the $1.2 m, we took the project through 50% design development, purchased the exhibits, managed the project, shipped the exhibits and exhibition installation.   We were able to design, purchase, deliver and install the exhibits in less than one year at a significantly lower cost.

In the process of working for the client we developed www.museum-exhibits.com as an internal website for tracking exhibits and vendors.  Along the way we realized that museum-exhibits had greater potential than just internal uses.  In the past I have written about the concept of the Hub Museum, museums that share resources.  We realized that museum-exhibits had become a curated “clearing house” for resources.  As museum-exhibits.com was developed for internal use it is a work in progress, but I now feel confident to share the site and ask for feedback.  I have now made www.museum-exhibits.com a public website.  As a follow up to this post I am interested in feedback on the website and will create an online survey.  I am also interested in suggestions for exhibits, sculptures and materials from vendors, and museum suppliers to be included.  Please use the vendor form to make suggestions.

museum-exhibits.com is an online resource for educational exhibits for museums, science centers, children’s museums, zoos and natural history museums.  The website content includes “off the shelf” exhibits, specialty effects and interactive kinetic sculpture for family learning environments.

“Off the Shelf” Exhibit Definition:

An already existing museum exhibit.   A proven museum / science center exhibit available for shipping within 6-12 weeks of contract signing.  Includes, one year warranty, maintenance manual, listing of replacement parts and electrical requirements.

What is the future of museum interactivity?

Reaching consensus on the stages of development of museums is difficult, but for the purpose of this conversation, I will use:

Museum 1.0
First Generation Museum, “Cabinet of Curiosity”
Collection cases, static displays, dioramas, object centric
•    Mutter Museum

Museum 2.0
Second Generation Museum / Science Center
Collection cases with push buttons and cranks
•    Museum of Science, Boston

Museum 3.0
Third Generation Museum / Science Center
Open ended, multi-layered and visitor centric and encourages conversations
•    Exploratorium

Museum 4.0
Fourth Generation Museum / Science Center
The Museum / Science Center is without walls, the museum experience starts prior to the visit to the “bricks and mortar” location and continues after the visit to the museum.  Museums of the fourth generation can / will use the techniques of museums 1.0, 2.0 and 3.0, plus the museum experience is customized to the visitor (similar to Web 3.0).  The visitor experience “meets” the visitor at their level of engagement, interest and knowledge.  The museum experience is customized to the visitor prior to the museum visit.   I do not know of any museum that I would refer to as Museum 4.0

Nomenclature becomes difficult, because web 1.0, web 2.0 and web 3.0 are often used in combination with Museum 1.0, Museum 2.0, Museum 3.0, Museum 4.0.  For more information about the development of the web Web 3.0 Explained

Many of the phases of the development of museums is based on the work of Piaget and Constructivist Learning Theory.  Piaget “suggested that through processes of accommodation and assimilation, individuals construct new knowledge from their experiences. When individuals assimilate, they incorporate the new experience into an already existing framework without changing that framework”.  In other words; when we don’t know why the sky is blue, we each come up with our own theory of why the sky is blue until other knowledge challenges our theory.  To change our “knowledge” of why the sky is blue, first we need to deconstruct our current theory, then replace the previous knowledge with new knowledge.

The Exploratorium is the forefather of today’s Science Center.  Many of the practices of the Exploratorium have now migrated to Art Museums, History Museums, Aquariums and Children’s Museums.  Science Museums prior to the Exploratorium (I will make a distinction between Science Museum and a Science Center, as Science Center incorporates the Constructivist Learning Theory), showed visitors information, the Exploratorium, encouraged visitors to deconstruct their previous knowledge.  Earlier Science Museums assumed that all visitors learned in the same way, assuming that by exhibiting a geode and a label, all visitors could assimilate the causes that created a geode.  It was the Museum of Science (Boston), that took content beyond the previous museum model of “Cabinet of Curiosities” by adding push buttons to diorama graphic panels, the museum created the first interactive exhibits and made the “knowledge that of the visitor”.

It was the Exploratorium that took museums to the next phase of their development, by having vistors perform science experiments instead of having “science shown”, as such the Exploratorium incorporated the theories of Piaget.  As an adjunct to Art Museums; Children’s Museums, grew from Art museums and the “teaching collection” of the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences (now the Brooklyn Museum).  Since Children’s Museums grew from the teaching collection of an Art Museums, Children’s Museums have always had a hands on approach.  During the same time as the opening of the Exploratorium, Kinetic Art was developing and the Exploratorium incorporated artists into the development of exhibits.

Previously, I believed that “theming” was the start of the next phase in the development of museums, but I no longer believe that to be the case.  Theming or ”the use of an overarching theme…to create a holistic and integrated spatial organization of a…venue” provides a context for the content of an exhibition.  Although we require a context for knowledge, I don’t believe the incorporation of theming to be a milestone in the development of museums.  I now see “theming” as a continuation of dioramas, as “walkthrough dioramas”.

Web 3.0 or the “Semantic Web”, is thought to be the next phase of the development of the world wide web.  Similarly, I believe the next phase in the development of museums, Museum 4.0 will closely follow the Web 3.0 or  a web of content “that can be processed directly and indirectly”.  One of the most difficult concepts to communicate is that of interconnections, the goal of Museums 4.0 will be that of interconnections.  As a continuation of my concept of the Hub Museum, the “museum” will no longer be a location but a web of locations and interconnections, starting before the “museum” visit and continuing after the visit to a physical location.

In the next blog post “Future of Interactivity, Part II”, I will explore types of interactivity, philosophies of interactivity and the future technologies of interactivity.

References:

History of Museums “Cabinet of Curiosities”, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cabinet_of_Curiosities

World’s Oldest Museum? http://uk.io9.com/5805358/the-story-behind-the-worlds-oldest-museum-built-by-a-babylonian-princess-2500-years-ago?skyline=true&s=i

Jean Piaget, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean_Piaget

Constructivism (learning theory),  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Constructivism_(learning_theory)

First Interactive Museum, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science_museum

Museum of Science (Boston), http://www.mos.org/exhibits_shows/current_exhibits&d=1223

Exploratorium History,  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exploratorium

Learning Styles, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_styles

Museum of Science (Boston), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum_of_Science_(Boston)

History of Children’s Museums, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Children’s_museum

Theming, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theming

Kinetic Art, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinetic_art

Web 3.0, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Semantic_Web

Note:

There are limited online resources for the history of museums and science centers, I will continue to update the above resources, mw

1. Evaluation and Market Research – Prior to opening the exhibition at Ellis Island we held two events in the Bay Area to evaluate the exhibition and gather public reaction.  The first event was a smaller event, we invited 100 museum professionals and “friends of museums” to an invitation event and used a  20 question survey about the exhibition to better understand the needs and impressions of the exhibition of potential museum clients.  Museums rent traveling exhibitions on a three month basis and we wanted to understand needs and suggestions of institutions.   Using the information gathered from the first event we made changes to the exhibition, changing the layout, installing artifacts and making changes to signage.  Then we held a second “event” at the San Mateo County Fair.  Over the course of 10 days at the San Mateo County Fair 120,000 people visited the exhibition.  It is great to ask people what they think?,  but seeing how 10,000 people a day use the exhibition was invaluable.
2. Same – Same but different – In many ways a traveling exhibition is the same as any other exhibition, but…The exhibition needs to be able to ship and the exhibition needs to drive attendance  and most importantly people in many different a cites need to be interested in renting the exhibition.   For more about how to design an exhibition see; “Museum Exhibition Design”
3. Make Changes –  Now we understood the need’s of museum clients, the general public and had a good understanding of how the exhibition will be used.  We made several changes to the exhibition; added exhibition cases, changed graphics, added props, added audio visual effects and added models.  I would recommend that people do not spend their entire fabrication budget prior to testing with the public, we are so glad that we had the funds to make changes prior to the premier at Ellis Island.
4. Public Relations – Mr. Robert Luke, a former inmate of Alcatraz Penitentiary graciously offered to be part of the opening at Ellis Island.  Mr. Luke now 84 years old, was arrested for bank robbery and was an inmate at Alcatraz.  He was at the event October 1st to cut the ribbon and was available for press events.  Over the course of the last two weeks more than 20 press organizations have picked up his story and included news of the opening of the exhibition.   I have never seen 17-22 year olds so engaged as they were speaking with Mr. Luke, they asked questions, he joked with them and kept them fully engaged for 45 minutes.  Make sure that you have a “news worthy story” to accompany your traveling exhibition.
5. Artifacts – People come to see traveling exhibitions to see artifacts.  The loan of artifacts is all about relationship building, people are loaning you priceless objects.  Build trust with the community of your exhibition topic.  Then work to the NPS standards (security hardware, Formaldehyde free wood, silica gel and monitor of case climate, etc.), transportation of art, loan agreements, insurance and insurance certificates.
6. Layout – Although our exhibition is 3000 square feet, different museums have different sized traveling exhibition spaces.  Make sure your exhibition has several configurations with a range of exhibition sizes (i.e. 2500 square ft to 3200 square feet).
   
7. Truck layout – Design the exhibition to fit into the truck trailer.  A typical trailer is 53′ long (52’6″ interior dimension), 101″ wide interior dimension and 110″ tall inside the doors.   Trailers vary from company to company, but you will want to request a lift-gate, air ride, climate controlled with side doors.  Confirm if the company uses trailers with a drop floor?  Many trailers do not have life gates requiring a fork life for off loading.
8. Measurements – Walk the path from the truck to the loading dock to the freight elevator to the traveling exhibit space and note all of the dimensions.  Make sure to do your walk through prior to the move in and load the trailer to accommodate the load in of the exhibition.
9. Crating –  Crates are built to protect their contents, they need to withstand the abuse of travel, loading and unloading and be built to take up as little room as possible.  Create a numbering system for the exhibition and identify each crate by the exhibition designation.  You will be able to stage the crates as you are loading in the exhibition by their number.  Often the best protection is an open cradle that can be easily rolled into the traveling exhibition area and unloaded.  Create slots to be able to life crates by both the width and length with a pallet jack.
10. Electrical – Once you have established the exhibition layout for the hosting venue, create an exhibition electrical plan. Work with the hosting venue to confirm the amperage, number of circuits and location of electrical.  Often you will need to  run electrical from a wall or ceiling to the exhibit location.
11. ADA – Traveling exhibition need to meet the ADA guidelines.  The Smithsonian has an excellent website on guidelines, Smithsonian ADA Guidelines
12. Load In / Load Out – Include in your exhibition budget, dollies (10 or more), pallet jack and a J bar.  Be sure to understand how much assistance you will receive from the hosting venue with loading in the the crates.
13. Exhibit Cleaning – Create a place for cleaning supplies within the exhibition, if it is easy to get to cleaning supplies people will be more likely to clean the exhibition.
14. Tools – A well organized tool cart makes all of the difference.  Standardize the exhibition hardware using a few different types of fasteners as possible (1/4-20, 3/8″, 1/2″).  Set up your tool cart to the different types of hardware.  Whenever possible the crate hardware is the same as the casework hardware, helping to simplify the installation.  Organize the tool cart with touch up paint and supplies on one side and tools on the other side.  Include in the tool cart, extra roto-locks, the exhibition installation manual and spare parts.
15. Photos – Once you have the signed contract for the rental of the exhibition you will want to visit the venue and walk the exhibition ”load in”, taking pictures from where the truck will unload to the traveling exhibition gallery.   A great help is to photograph the contents of each crate and put a copy of the photo inside of the crate lid.  The photo will be very helpful in reloading the crates three months latter.  After the artifacts are installed photograph each artifact case and send copies of the photos to the insurance company.  If there was ever to be a loss, the insurance copy will already have a copy of all of the installed artifacts.
16. Installation crew- The people that install traveling exhibitions tend to fall into three categories, movers (the people that will load and unload the trucks) Installers (the people that will set up and deinstall the exhibition) and art handlers (the people the will install the artifacts).  Depending on the number of artifacts you may also have a registrar to write the condition reports for each artifact.
17. Roto-Locks - Roto-locks are a concealed hardware system for connecting wall panels.  They allow walls to ship in cradles (6-10 walls per cradle) with wheels to allow quick set up of walls.
18. Insurance – Unlike a permanently installed exhibition, a traveling exhibition requires an insurance policy for each new venue to cover the exhibition and the artifacts that travel with the exhibition.  Each new venue will require an Certificate of Insurance.  At each venue the contracted Art Handlers and installers will need to show proof of insurance and sign an agreement that they are not employees of the venue or the sponsors of the exhibition.

Resources:
CASTEX Guidelines for touring exhibitions in Europe:  http://www.extrascience.eu/documents/Guidelines-CASTEX.pdf

Brass Knuckles c. 1958 from Mr. Ira Bowden General Foreman on Alcatraz Penitentiary 1958 – 1960.

The “Alcatraz: Life on the Rock” traveling exhibition opened at Ellis Island October 1st and was featured in the  New York Times, Arts section (see article below).  The exhibition is available for rental starting January 17th, 2011.  I will be at the Association of Science Technology Centers conference October 15th-18th to announce the premiere of the exhibition.  Please contact me regarding rental pricing and schedule availability.  I will create a follow up museumplanner.org blog post of “traveling exhibitions best practices” as my next post.

From the New York Times, October 6, 2011:
Alcatraz Exhibition at Ellis Island Museum
By RACHEL LEE HARRIS
Published: October 6, 2011

Richard Weideman has spent about 30 years on Alcatraz, though he hasn’t done anything illegal. He is a National Park Ranger who was assigned to supervise operations there in the early 1980s and has been devoted to the island and its many incarnations ever since.

Alcatraz, of course, is best known as America’s first maximum-security, minimum-privilege federal penitentiary, and that, along with the eerie stories about it, is what drew the Miser to the island on a trip to San Francisco several years ago. But as it turns out, Alcatraz was also a Civil War fort, built to protect Western land from attacks by Southern sympathizers; home to the West Coast’s first lighthouse, which guided ships along the rocky shoreline during the Gold Rush; a place of protest for American Indians, who seized the island shortly before Thanksgiving 1969 and occupied it for 19 months; a residence for the families of prison guards; and perhaps most surprising, a garden and bird sanctuary.

This rich history (and the fact that it was free with the purchase of a $13 ferry ride) is what drew the Miser to “Alcatraz: Life on the Rock,” a traveling exhibition sponsored by the National Park Service and Alcatraz Cruises, which opened at the Ellis Island Museum of Immigration last Saturday.

The restored gardens of Alcatraz, all 50,000 square feet of them, are “a treasure trove of documentary history” and a great place for garden archaeology, Mr. Weideman said in a telephone interview. Civil War-era ruins and roses native to Scotland that were thought to be extinct have turned up there. “The juxtaposition is phenomenal,” he said.

Thrill-seeking visitors will still get plenty of gory Alcatraz-as-prison action. The exhibition features audio documentary from convicts and guards who lived there; a reproduction of tunnels through which prisoners like Frank Morris tried to escape; an original letter written by Robert Stroud, the Birdman of Alcatraz; and other artifacts, like a baseball initialed in blood, found in the prison’s exercise yard.

(Through Jan. 12; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., daily; free with the purchase of a ferry ticket to Ellis Island: $5 to $13; 201-604-2800,statuecruises.com.)

Link to the New York Times article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/07/arts/alcatraz-exhibition-at-ellis-island-museum.html

Kadoya Art House

As a follow up to the post “Museums are Hospitality”  I created a thread on the American Association of Museum’s Linkedin thread “What is the Business of Museums?“.   I suggested that “Museums are in the “hospitality” business, not the education business”.  The response has been great.  Although, Many people felt that I didn’t understand the business of museums or that it was “sacrilege” to say that museums are in the “Hospitality” business.  The longer the discussion continued, the more convinced I became that museums are in the “Hospitality” business, but now for different reasons.  The responses got me thinking about a “core” business of museums that is an intangible, that I will call “connecting with the muses“.

Museums grew out of Cabinets of Curiosities, a way for the wealthy to collect and organize the objects of their travels and education, you could think of Cabinets of Curiosities as a way for the rich to show off to guests.  There are many different types of hosts; humble hosts, conceited hosts, fun hosts, etc..  As museum professionals we are acting as the host of our museum and we dictate the type of experience for the visitor.

Last week I was in Union Square in San Francisco and walked into the St. Francis Hotel to use the bathroom. As soon as I walked in, I buttoned my jacket, looked in the mirror to check my hair, stood straighter. I wanted to become worthy of the “attitude” of the St. Francis, even if only to use the bathroom. My reasons, were because of the style, elegance and expense of the hotel.  Museums “ask” visitors to be better people, to reach their full potential. The reasons for me straightening my hair at the St. Francis are different then the reasons that I straighten my hair at the Museum of Modern Art, but the impact on me is the same, I want to be a better person. Creating an atmosphere of potential is a part of hospitality, “what can be”, “who can we become”, to nurture the spirit in each of us to be a better person. “Hospitality” is not pandering, it is elevating an experience.  Museums are “serving” their communities by asking them to be better people, not giving them what they “want”. We all want to be better people, but sometimes we need to be reminded to reach and that is the role of a museum, to remind us of our potential, what is possible and what has been accomplished.

I don’t believe any amount of market research or marketing would support, building the Cy Twombly Gallery.  But there it sits, one of the best museum experiences ever. The de Menil family had faith that building such a place would enrichen the lives of visitors. I felt as if, I was welcomed into the home of the de Menil’s and they shared with me their passion for the work of Cy Twombly. The de Menils are wonderful hosts.

This is a very personal list, some of my favorite places to “connect with the muses”

1. Cy Twonbly Gallery
2. Benesse Art Museums
3. Storm King
4. Museum of Jurasic Technology
5. City Museum
6. The Modern Museum of Art
7. Yale Art Gallery
8. Noguchi
9. Mass MOCA
10. DIA Beacon
11. The Earth Room

The United States National Park Service creates interpretation for 394 National Park sites including; national parks, monuments, battlefields, military parks, historical parks, historic sites, lake shores, seashores, recreation areas, scenic rivers and trails, and the White House.   The total number of visitors to the National Parks in 2010 was 281,303,769 visitors.  To support the development, design and project management of the interpretation of the sites, NPS created The Harper’s Ferry Center in 1970.  Services of the Harper’s Ferry Center:

• Historic Photos
• National Park Service Maps
• Publications
• Media Development

Many of the resources are free.  My favorite resource is the Museum Exhibit Planner template.  The freely distributable template runs on Filemaker for Mac or PC and “helps exhibit teams manage content elements and keep track of project goals, quality factors, and project requirements related to content.”  Museum planning teams can use the template “as is” or users can modify the template to meet their needs.

We have been using the template for several years for our database of exhibits and find it to be a fantastic tool.  If you decide to use the Museum Exhibit Planner template please forward feedback to Harper’s Ferry Center to help with correcting errors and enhancing the usefulness.

Resources:

National Park Service, Frequently Asked Questions:

http://www.nps.gov/faqs.htm

Harper’s Ferry “Museum Exhibit Planner”

http://www.nps.gov/hfc/products/imi/imi-ex-plan.htm

About the Harper’s Ferry Center:

http://www.nps.gov/hfc/

Frequently Asked Questions About Museum Master Planning and Exhibition Design:
1. How do you start a museum?
http://museumplanner.org/starting-a-museum/
2. How do you get a museum job?
http://museumplanner.org/getting-a-museum-job/
http://museumplanner.org/getting-started-in-museums/
3. How much do museum exhibitions cost?
http://museumplanner.org/2011-museum-exhibition-costs/
http://museumplanner.org/how-much-do-exhibits-cost/
4. How do you design an exhibition?
http://museumplanner.org/museum-exhibition-design-2/
http://museumplanner.org/museum-exhibition-design-2/
5. What is the future of museums?
http://museumplanner.org/hub-museum-4/
http://museumplanner.org/predictions-for-2010-2011-2012/
6. What is Museum Master Planning?
http://museumplanner.org/museum-master-planning/
7. How do you raise money for a museum?
http://museumplanner.org/museum-fundraising/
8. How do you create a traveling exhibition?
http://museumplanner.org/museum-fundraising/

Do you have a question about Museum Master Planning or Exhibition Design that has not been answered on museumplanner.org?  Enter the question in the comment section below.

Defining and describing “Museum Exhibition Design” is not an easy task.  After 20+ years working in museum exhibition design, I have arrived at my own definition.  The first tough part is a definition of a “museum”.  I have kludged together a definition of “museum”:

Museum – “An organization in the service of society and its development, open to the public, which  researches, communicates and exhibits things and ideas, for the purposes of education, study and enjoyment.”

1. Many museums are non collecting, so a museum is not about displaying a collection
2. Some museums are “for profit”, so a museum can’t be defined by tax status
3. Some museums don’t have a building or a “home”, so it is not about a location

Second tough part “exhibition”, I kludged together:

Exhibition: “An event at which displays are put out in a public space for people to view and interact”

Third part “design”, I kludged together:

Design – “The making of a plan for the construction of an object or a system”

Now, can I create a definition of  ”Museum Exhibition Design” that can apply to all the different types of museums?

Science Center
Natural History Museum
Airport Museum
Natural History Museum
Traveling Exhibition
Art Museum
History Museum
Aquarium
Mobile Museum
On line Museum / Virtual Museum
Zoological Park
Botanic Garden

Definition:

Museum Exhibition Design:  ”The making of a plan for the construction of  public displays for the purposes of education, study and enjoyment,  in the service of society and its development.”

Exhibition Design Process — Phases

The museum exhibition design process can be divided into five distinct phases:

• Concept Development
• Schematic Design
• Design Development
• Final Design
• Construction Documents

The output of the design process:

• Fabrication
• Installation

Exhibition Design Process – Concept Development

Concept Development provides the “road map” for the project, where is the project going?, how will it get there? and a definition of the resources available to complete the project. Concept Development is culminated with the signing of a Project Charter outlining all of the components of the project.

• Project Objectives
• Project Filters
• Project Charter
• Initial Budget
• Initial Schedule
• Project Narrative, included in the Project Charter
• Front End Evaluation Umbrella Concept
• “Look and Feel”

Exhibition Narrative

Design Process – Schematic Design

The goal of Schematic Design, is to flesh out the scope and character 0f the project. This enables all parties involved to confirm themes, interpretation goals and to review spatial arrangements, appearance, artifact use, materials and cost.

By the and of the Schematic Design phase, the team will have visuals, narratives, look-and-feel boards and layouts to initially review the allocation of space, traffic flow, audi0—visual components, interactive displays, lighting and special effects. An overall graphic identity for the exhibit at this stage of design.

Typical Deliverables for Schematic Phase in—person meetings (and distribution of meeting notes)

• Content: description of project goals and messages
• Content: visitor experience narrative
• Content: outline 0f major components
• Design: Rough plan view w/content
• Design: Diagrams 0f content relationships
• Design: Traffic-flow diagrams
• Design: Sketches 0f key points in exhibition
• Design: Color perspective sketches (for fundraising and exhibit naming opportunities)
• Graphic Design: Collage of look & feel for exhibits and graphics
• Schedule: Fabrication and Installation schedule
• Schedule: budget development
• Schematic Design Phase deliverables: bound II” x 17″ booklets + electronic master copy

Bubble Diagram

Exhibition Rendering

Schematic Floor Plan

Design Process – Design Development

During Design Development, section and elevation drawings of exhibits in the space are created. Content research is compiled into draft text and descriptions of the exhibits and the interactives. Functions of Audio-visuals and computer programs that will be part chartered

The family of graphic elements is complied and a graphic schedule of all the graphics is created. Graphic directional and identification signage for interior and exterior spaces of the exhibit area become part of the program.

Typical Deliverables for Design Development Phase

In-person meetings (and distribution of meeting notes)

• Content: Final outline
• Content: Draft text
• Content: Initial image and object list
• Content: Interactives and audio/visual outlines
• Design: Plan w/content (CAD drawings)
• Design: Elevations and Sections (CAD drawings)
• Design: Preliminary Electrical plan (CAD draft)
• Design: Preliminary Mechanical plan (CAD draft)
• Design: Preliminary Lighting plan (CAD draft)
• Design: Exhibit Component Database
• Visuals: Interactive sketches
• Graphic Design: Exhibit graphic design
• Graphic Design: Inventory/matrix
• Graphic Design: Layout & design of typical panels
• Graphic Design: Directional Signing (way-finding) — locations plan and elevations with specifications for interior spaces
• Schedule: Revised fabrication and installation schedule
• Schedule: Revised fabrication budget
• Database of graphics
• Prototyping of interactive exhibits

DD Floor Plan

DD Exhibit Detail

Prototyping

Design Process – Final Design

By the conclusion of the Final Design phase, a complete package that illustrates the full exhibit design—h0w it will be built, where every component is located and how each works within the larger space. This package includes exhibition identification, exhibition descriptions, a database of exhibit components, measured CAD plans with content, floor plans, elevations, artifact lists, measured graphic design elements and samples, draft scripts with details for audio visual components, interactive exhibits, final text, sound and lighting systems specifications, production schedules and a fabrication cost estimate.

Once this phase is completed and has been approved by the team, the team can transition into fabrication.

Typical Deliverables for Final Design Phase

• Three in-person meetings (and distribution of meeting notes)
• Content: Final text
• C0ntent: Draft scripts: interactives & A/V
• Design : Plan w/content (measured CAD drawing)
• Design : Elevations w/graphics & dioramas/murals (measured CAD)
• Design : Sections/details (measured CAD)
• Design : Electrical plan/schedule (measured CAD)
• Design : Mechanical plan/schedule (measured CAD)
• Design : Lighting plan (measured CAD)
• Design : A/V Signal plan (measured CAD)
• Design : Finish schedule
• Design : Interactive operation diagrams
• Design : Audiovisual concept sketches
• Architectural Permit documents (as required)
• Graphic Design: Exhibit graphic design (measured drawings)
• Graphic Design: Image management & acquisition
• Exhibit component database with product and material specifications
• Schedule: Final fabrication and installation schedule
• Schedule: Final fabrication budget

FD Electrical Plan

A/V Plan

Design Process – Construction Documents (CD Also called Contract Documents)

By the conclusion of the Final Design phase, a complete package that illustrates the full exhibit design—how it will be built, where every component is located and how each works within the larger space. This package includes exhibition identification, exhibition descriptions, a database of exhibit components, measured CAD plans with content, floor plans, elevations, artifact lists, measured graphic design elements and samples, draft scripts with details for audio visual components, interactive exhibits, final text, sound and lighting systems specifications, production schedules and a fabrication cost estimate.

Once this phase is completed and has been approved by the team, the team can transition into fabrication.  Typical Deliverables for Final Design Phase

• Three in-person meetings (and distribution of meeting notes)
• Content: Final text
• Content: Draft scripts: interactives & A/V
• Design: Plan w/content (measured CAD drawing)
• Design: Elevations w/graphics & dioramas/murals (measured CAD)
• Design: Sections/details (measured CAD) Design: Electrical plan/schedule (measured CAD)
• Design: Mechanical plan/schedule (measured CAD) (if required)
• Design: Lighting plan (measured CAD)
• Design: A/V Signal plan (measured CAD)
• Design: Finish schedule
• Design: Interactive operation diagrams
• Design: Audio visual concept sketches
• Architectural Permit documents (as required)
• Graphic Design: Exhibit graphic design (measured drawings)
• Graphic Design: Image management & acquisition (as defined in budget)
• Exhibit component database with product and material specifications
• Schedule: Final fabrication and installation schedule
• Schedule: Final fabrication budget

CD Detail

The tough part, I call it “Museum Voice”, how does the museum communicate with the public?, as an “school teacher”, ” a surfing buddy”, “a driving instructor”, “a best friend”, all are valid.  A “voice” will come through if you design one or not, so be conscious of how you are communicating with the public.

Sources:

“How Museum Do Exhibits Cost” by Jay Rounds and Joyce Cheney, Exhibitionist Spring 2002, Vol 21, No.1

“Architecture and Exhibition Design: A Survey of Infrastructure” by Charles Howarth Jr. and Maeryta Medrano, ASTC, 1997 (Discovery Science Center, Santa Ana, CA, / Mark Walhimer was one of the case studies)

2010, 2009, 2008 ASTC Statistics Analysis Package

www.si.edu/opanda/reports/EXCost.pdf

http://www.aam-us.org/aboutmuseums/whatis.cfm

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum

http://icom.museum/who-we-are/the-vision/museum-definition.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exhibition

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design

http://www.louvre.fr/llv/musee/histoire_louvre.jsp?bmLocale=en

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitoline_Museums

Thank you all for participating in the “2011 Museum Exhibition Survey”.   59 people responded to the survey, between June 27, 2011 and July 18, 2011.

The majority of the exhibition responses were History Museums (30.5%), Science Centers (27.1%), Children’s Museums (16.9%) and Traveling Exhibitions (11.9%).  The majority of the responses are for exhibition between 1000 square feet and 5000 square feet (67.9% total).  The per square foot costs were grouped in three ranges $25-$75 per square foot (25.5% total), $100-$150 per square foot (30.6% total), $250-$350 per square foot (25.5% total).  I was pleased to see the high percentage of Project Managers and Museum Directors that responded (39 respondents or 66.1%), both roles are the most familiar with exhibition costs.

The surprises of the survey.  I was surprised by the lack of responses from Art Museums, we only received two respondents regarding Art exhibitions, that may have to do with the audience of this blog. Exhibitions were designed “In house” (52.6%), I was not aware that so many museums still have staff exhibition designers, most of the news I have been receiving has been of layoffs, I was pleased to see this high percentage of “in house” exhibition design.  It is hard to beleive that only (15.3%) of museum exhibitions are still designed in house, when I started in museums in 1980s, close to 100% of exhibitions were fabricated by museum staff.  This appears to be a trend of keeping exhibition maintenance staff and augmenting the staff with contracted exhibition fabricators.  I was surprised by the (40%) of exhibition design costs in the 25%-30% range, that is higher then expected.  I was similarly surprised by the (37.5%) of “in house” design budget in the range of 30%.

Survey Result:

The average 6000 square foot History Museum, Science Center, Children’s Museum and Traveling exhibitions are $204 per square foot with 17% spent on research, design and exhibit development.

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As a follow up to “How much do museum exhibitions cost?” , I have created a five (5) question survey.  The results will be posted here on Museum Planner.

Thank you for taking the time to complete the survey !

-Mark