uw ki 2013_fin_short
DESCRIPTION
How does someone end up making a career of creating exhibits? Until recently, the paths for most people entering the museum exhibition field have been many and varied – and I’m no exception. My hope with this discussion is to shed some light on the odd impact various interests and events from childhood to today have led me on this path, and the significant impact that serendipity has played. Along the way, I’ll be making observations about museums and exhibitions based on my experiences “in the wild”. And, I hope I’ll be able to shed some light on how the museum and exhibit theory imparted in the KI program reacts when it collides with reality (!).TRANSCRIPT
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The AccidentalKnowledge Integrator
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Talk Organization
• Where I work?• What do I do there?• How did I end up in exhibits?• Reality and theory• Why I do the work
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Where I Work
• Waterloo Region Museum (WRM)• Located in Kitchener• On Homer Watson Drive, near 401
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WRM – The Village
• Opened in 1957• Living history village• Checkered history…
– "Worst to first"
• Interprets life in 1914• Mostly authentic
buildings• Use a mix of artifacts
and reproductions inside them
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WRM – Curatorial Centre
• Opened in 1995• Office space• Collections storage
– 45, 000 objects– Previously in barns,
attics, and cellars…
• Conservation labs• Fabrication shop and
design studio added in 2009
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WRM – Museum
• Opened in 2010• Exhibits opened
late 2011 and 2012• Largest community
museum in Ontario• Tells the story of
Waterloo Region– 12, 000 years ago to
today
• 70, 000 visitors
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WRM – Amenities
• 20, 000 sq ft of exhibits• 105 seat theatre• 3 class/meeting rooms• Food service• Gift shop• Wifi• Patio• Fully accessible• LEED Silver certified
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What do I do there?
• Curator of Exhibits…???• Not a good description• I am not a content expert on local history• I do not spend my time actively working
with the collection
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What do I do there?
• Curator of Exhibits…???• Not a good description• I am not a content expert on local history• I do not spend my time actively working
with the collection
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What do I do there?
• Content research• Visual research• Audience research• Exhibit design• Content development• Interactive design• Prototyping• Fabrication• Text writing• Digital media• Video production
• Cost estimating• RFPs• Project management• Fabrication supervision• Grant writing• Installation supervision• Construction
management• Hiring and firing
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What do I do there?
• Have now been involved in about $100 million in projects– 20+ exhibits of varying sizes and
budgets– 2 museum construction projects
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How did I end up in exhibits?
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How did I end up in exhibits?
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How did I end up in exhibits?
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How did I end up in exhibits?
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How did I end up in exhibits?
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How did I end up in exhibits?
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How did I end up in exhibits?
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How did I end up in exhibits?
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How did I end up in exhibits?
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How did I end up in exhibits?
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How did I end up in exhibits?
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How did I end up in exhibits?
• I always enjoyed drawing and graphic arts• I was constantly doodling all over everything
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How did I end up in exhibits?
• So, there I was @ 17 years old– Like creating things– Liked drawing– Liked making replicas– Had a fondness for museums
• Now what?!?!?!• Serendipity intervenes
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How did I end up in exhibits?
• A high school classmate in Germany left to go to Carleton… …to study Industrial Design
• "What's ID?"– Drawing, engineering, materials, human factors – wow!
• I arrived at Carleton's ID program 2 years later• After 4 (well, 5) years, drawn most to
– Design theory– design management– empathy for end users
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How did I end up in exhibits?
• I joined the Army Reserve while at Carleton– It's the "family business"…
• Learned a lot of useful skills:– Anticipating and adapting to changing circumstances– Systematic assessment of problems before jumping into
solutions– "Project" planning, coordination and management– Efficient communication, including concise mission
statements– Constantly developing contingency plans– Acceptance of and comfort with ambiguity
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How did I end up in exhibits?
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How did I end up in exhibits?
• 3 Years later, grad school• An article in Museum News
– about a Museum Exhibition Planning and Design program passed my way
• 8 months later I was at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia
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Reality meets theory
• First job at the Canada Museum of Science and Technology in Ottawa
• 3 years doing "audience research"– Watching visitors using exhibits and interactives– Prototyping hands on activities– Measuring and modeling the success of exhibits and the
museum– Trying to make exhibit outputs match the theory– "Exhibit as learning machine"
• Learned a lot about visiting a museum or exhibit from the visitors' point of view
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Reality meets theory
• Planners and designers ignored or dismissed the results
• "As an employee of (protecting the innocent) who has worked with kids, parents and educators for two decades, I thought I had a clear view of what an “ideal” visit to the Museum should look like. Now that I have a child of my own, I realize that this idealized view, while well-intentioned, was (to be honest) not-quite-realistic. "
• This is incredibly common amongst museum professionals
• It is simply unacceptable• We don't know or acknowledge our own
theory
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Issaquah Salmon Hatchery
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Issaquah Salmon Hatchery
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Soundbridge
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Heroes, Heartthrobs & Horrors
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Connecticut Valley Furniture
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Connecticut Valley Furniture
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Connecticut Valley Furniture
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History is All Around Us
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History is All Around Us
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Making Waves
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Making Waves
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BCM Expansion
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KidStage
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The Common
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The Common
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Children of Hangzhou
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Children of Hangzhou
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Peep's World
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Peep's World
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WRM – Long Term Gallery
• 15, 000 sq ft• "What Makes Us
Who We Are?"
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Schedule
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Team Process
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Concept Development
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Artifacts – Case Layout
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Community Involvement
• Wagon cover – public involvement to sew it
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Community Involvement
• Wagon cover – prototypes and sewing
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Installation
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Installation
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Installation
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WRM – Temporary Gallery
• 5, 000 sq ft• Changing exhibits• By WRM and rented• "Unconventional
Thinking"
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WRM – Coming of Age
• 2, 500 sq ft• Long term
temporary• Teenage life 1920s
to today
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Why I do the work
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Why I do the work
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Why I do the work
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Why I do the work
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Why I do the work