Making the Museum

Can an eye-catching museum revitalize a city? The answer might surprise you.

Getting the right designer is vital. If you don’t like a painting you can put it away, but if you don’t like a building, you can’t take it down. Why is it important to have the goals of a complex museum project fit in a mantra of a few words? What comes first in museum architecture, practicality or creative genius? Should you choose your designers by design competition? If not, what’s the alternative? What are the three things a designer needs to do, to win a major project?

Andy Klemmer (Founder, Paratus Group) joins host Jonathan Alger (Managing Partner, C&G Partners) to reveal “The Real Bilbao Effect”.

Along the way: why every architect has a bad building, how $300 per square foot can beat $3,000 per square foot, and why you should always take people to ball games.

Talking Points:

1. Words matter

2. Helping an owner be a conductor

3. Every architect has one bad building

4. Good Bilbao Effect vs. Bad Bilbao Effect

5. Architecture is practicality first, fun second

6. Why you shouldn’t hold a design competition

7. Nature, community, service, faith (& other mantras)

How to Listen:

Apple Podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-the-museum/id1674901311

Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/6oP4QJR7yxv7Rs7VqIpI1G

Everywhere
https://makingthemuseum.transistor.fm/

Guest Bio:

Andrew Klemmer established Paratus Group in 1997 to offer specialized consulting for cultural projects involving complex programs, exceptional design, intricate construction, and highly creative global teams. With over thirty years of experience, Andrew assumes a pivotal leadership role in every Paratus project. The genesis of Paratus stems from Andrew's oversight of the expansion of the landmarked Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in 1991 and subsequent involvement in directing the planning and programming of Frank Gehry’s Guggenheim Museum Bilbao in Spain. Paratus uniquely leads in programming, planning, budgeting, design, and construction oversight for cultural institutions, adhering to core principles from project inception to completion. Noteworthy projects include collaborations with renowned architects like Renzo Piano, SANAA, Jean Paul Viguier, and Herzog de Meuron. Andrew is active in the architecture community, contributing as a guest critic, speaker, and advisory panelist. He holds bachelor’s degrees in economics and environmental studies from Bowdoin College.

About MtM:

Making the Museum is hosted (podcast) and written (newsletter) by Jonathan Alger. 

This podcast is a project of C&G Partners | Design for Culture. Learn about the firm's creative work at: https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Show Link:

Paratus Group: https://www.paratusgroup.com/

MtM Show Contact:

https://www.makingthemuseum.com/contact

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanalger

[email protected]

https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Newsletter:
 
Like the episode? Try the newsletter. Making the Museum is also a one-minute email on exhibition planning and design for museum leaders, exhibition teams and visitor experience professionals. Subscribe here:
https://www.makingthemuseum.com

How can we raise the voices of people of color in museums and exhibitions — and what stands in the way?

What is Museum Hue? What constitutes a sustainable museum job, a sustainable career? What percentage of staff at museums are folks of color, and what roles do they have? What do we see happening in the exhibitions that museums create?  Many cultural organizations began their DEI initiatives after the tragic events of 2020; how are those programs doing now? Could exhibitions be one of the best places to make visible change happen?

Sierra Van Ryck DeGroot (Deputy Director, Museum Hue) and Jinelle Thompson (Research and Partnerships Manager, Museum Hue) join host Jonathan Alger (Managing Partner, C&G Partners) to discuss “Raising the Voices of People of Color in Museums and Exhibitions”.

Along the way: the power of networking, Front of House vs. Back of House, and the Museum salary transparency spreadsheet.

Talking Points:

1. What Museum Hue does, and how it all started.

2. The challenge of raising the voices of people of color in the museum and exhibitions field.

3. The real numbers: percentages of museum staff who are people of color.

4. How we can bring students into sustainable careers in the arts (and what “sustainable” means here).

5. Ways to help raise the voices of people of color: Exposure, Mentorship, Support, and Networking.

6. How listeners can get involved: Museum Hue is looking for Speakers, Collaborators, Sponsors, and Partners.

How to Listen:

Apple Podcasts

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-the-museum/id1674901311

Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/6oP4QJR7yxv7Rs7VqIpI1G

Everywhere
https://makingthemuseum.transistor.fm/

Guest Bios:
  

Sierra Van Ryck deGroot is the Deputy Director of Museum Hue. A proud alumna of the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Leadership Program at Seton Hall University and Bank Street College of Education. Sierra has her BA in Art, Design and Interactive Media; Fine Arts; and Art History and M.S.Ed in Museum Education. A child of Guyanese immigrants. She is proudly born and raised in Central Jersey (NJ) which does exist and it is pork roll, not Taylor Ham. She is also half of the former Sierras co-presidential leadership team of the National Emerging Museum Professionals Network, a current board member for the New Jersey Association of Museums and participating in many side quests related to advocating for change in the GLAM sector, especially in museums, around salary transparency, actionable equity, in higher in practices, the abolition of unpaid internships, and the practice of rest for all museum workers.

Jinelle Thompson is the Research & Partnerships Manager at Museum Hue. She is an arts administrator and cultural strategist working with cultural institutions to establish equitable partnerships and programming with communities across NYC. Through qualitative research, collaborative visioning, and anti-oppressive facilitation, Jinelle develops engagement strategies for the inclusion and empowerment of communities of color. She has organized workshop and public programs with artists, organizers, and activists concerning civic engagement, immigration, voting rights, and mass incarceration. In addition to her work with museums and arts organizations, Jinelle has worked with libraries, social impact organizations, and elected officials in state and municipal government providing operations and administrative support through project and client management, strategic communications, and event administration. Jinelle holds a Bachelor’s with honors in Sociology & Political Science with a concentration in Public Law and a Masters in Museum Studies.

About MtM:

Making the Museum is hosted (podcast) and written (newsletter) by Jonathan Alger. This podcast is a project of C&G Partners | Design for Culture. Learn about the firm's creative work at: https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Show Links:

Museum Hue: https://www.museumhue.org/
Museum Hue on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/museum-hue/
Museum Hue on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/museumhue/
Museum Hue on Twitter / X: https://twitter.com/museumhue

Sierra’s Email: [email protected]
Sierra on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sierravrd/
Sierra on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sierragoesthere/
Sierra on Twitter / X: https://twitter.com/sierra_vrd

Jinelle’s Email: [email protected]
Jinelle’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jinellethompson/

MtM Show Contact:

https://www.makingthemuseum.com/contact
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanalger
[email protected]
https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Newsletter:

Like the episode? Try the newsletter. Making the Museum is also a one-minute email on exhibition planning and design for museum leaders, exhibition teams and visitor experience professionals. Subscribe here: https://www.makingthemuseum.com 

What do technologies like the Apple Vision Pro mean for exhibitions and experiences?

For people who create cultural destinations, the pace of technology has now become so fast it’s hard to keep up. AR, VR, AI. What’s happening in the “near future” of the technologies that will define our field for years to come? What is spatial computing? Are projection mapping and Pepper’s Ghosts early forms of augmented reality? Is the extreme personalization of all digital content causing problems we don’t even understand yet? Are museums a potential antidote?

Neil Redding (Near Futurist and SXSW Speaker) joins host Jonathan Alger (Managing Partner, C&G Partners) to discuss “The Near Future of Experience Design”.

Along the way: self-driving cars, the third era of computing, and getting fidgety about phygital.

Talking Points:

1. What is “Near Futurism”?

2. Applying Near Futurism to Experience Design

3. Are Physical and Digital Converging?

4. What is “Spatial Computing”?
5. The Near Future of Augmented Reality (AR)

6. The Near Future of Virtual Reality (VR)

Guest Bio:
  

Neil Redding is a keynote speaker, author, Innovation Architect and Near Futurist. Neil has worked at the convergence of digital and physical for decades, and is an expert in spatial computing, virtual and augmented reality (VR/AR), AI and convergent brand ecosystems.

As a Near Futurist, Neil focuses on connecting what's possible with what's practical. Neil currently leads Redding Futures, a boutique consultancy that enables brands and businesses to powerfully engage the Near Future. Prior to founding Redding Futures, Neil held leadership roles at Mediacom, Proximity/BBDO, Gensler, ThoughtWorks and Lab49. He has delivered for clients including Visa, Nike, Cadillac, Macy’s, NBA, Verizon, TED, The Economist, MoMA, Converse, Morgan Stanley, Apple, Oracle, Financial Times, and Fidelity Investments.

He has spoken at numerous conferences including SXSW, AWE, Immerse Global Summit, infoComm, Tech2025, CreateTech, SEGD XLab, A.R.E. Shoptalk, Creative Technology Week, Design+AI and VRevolution. Neil is also editor of Near Future of Retail, author of the forthcoming book The Ecosystem Paradigm, and advises multiple startups at the leading edge of the digital-physical convergence.

Show Links:

Neil’s Email: [email protected]

Neil at LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/reddingneil/

Neil’s Website: https://www.neilredding.com

Newsletter:

Like the episode? Try the newsletter. Making the Museum is also a one-minute email on exhibition planning and design for museum leaders, exhibition teams and visitor experience professionals. Subscribe here:
https://www.makingthemuseum.com

Great projects happen because of great teams. But how do you build that team in the first place?

Who should a museum hire first, to start a major project? How do you decide whether internal staff should run a big project, or if you need help from outside? Should you hire an architect before you hire an exhibition designer, or vice versa? Who else do you need, and when? Where can a museum find firms they might like to work with? What’s an “owner’s rep” anyway?

Beth Van Why (Senior Project Manager, Becker & Frondorf) returns to the show, joining host Jonathan Alger (Managing Partner, C&G Partners) to discuss “Assembling a Collaborative Project Team”.

Along the way: what “AV integrator” means, choosing your own adventure, and how to build a museum on top of Pike’s Peak.

Talking Points:

1. What is a project team?

2. Every project has unique restrictions and opportunities.

3. What museums can do internally vs. when they need help.

4. Timeline for adding staff, partners, and consultants.

5. Owners reps, museum planners, architects, exhibition designers — who else?

6. The role of RFQs and RFPs in team building.

Guest Bio:
  

Beth Van Why has spent most of her career managing construction and development projects for non-profit and cultural institutions. She offers an extensive background in architecture, exhibit design, collections care, construction, and owner-run program management. Beth is very familiar with the various funding sources available to non-profits and the parameters that come with them. From master planning to design and budget consultation, Beth brings a comprehensive view of the role needed in making a building project successful. A strong advocate for the importance of education, Beth also serves as an associate professor in museum design at University of the Arts.
 
Show Links:

[email protected]
https://www.beckerfrondorf.com/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/bethvanwhy/

Newsletter:
 
Like the episode? Try the newsletter. Making the Museum is also a one-minute email on exhibition planning and design for museum leaders, exhibition teams and visitor experience professionals. Subscribe here:
https://www.makingthemuseum.com

How can we make digital experiences work for all visitors — whether kids or grandparents?

Hint: it has to do with recognizing “diverse digital literacies.” When should you bring in a creative technologist? Why should you aim for the strong verbs? What is “sneaky attract mode”? How do you do paper prototyping? Are a lot of digital experiences in museums essentially “sexy browsing”? Are touch tables a trend that will never die?

Patrick Snee (Creative Technologist) joins Jonathan Alger (Managing Partner, C&G Partners) to reveal “5 Secrets of Digital Experience Design”.

Along the way: tessellation, thinking in three dimensions, and a return to agar art!

Talking Points:

1. Think in 3 Dimensions

2. Assume Diverse Digital Literacies

3. Identify the (Strong) Verb

4. Distill the Personality

5. Prototype Early and Often

Guest Bio:
  

For more than two decades, Patrick Snee has designed and engineered immersive, interactive exhibitions for leading museums and brand environments. As a creative technologist, he uses a holistic, multi-disciplinary approach to craft effective, engaging digital experiences. A former agency founder and principal, Patrick now consults on complex media projects in roles ranging from concept strategy to interaction design to application development. His recent projects include immersive experiences for Kennedy Space Center and Nokia Bell Labs, interactive exhibits for Liberty Science Center, The Henry Ford, and the National Archives, and digital strategy for the New Britain Museum of American Art.

Show Links:

https://patricksnee.com/

[email protected]

https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrick-snee/

https://www.instagram.com/mnemonic.studio/

About Micro-interactions:

https://uxdesign.cc/micro-interactions-why-when-and-how-to-use-them-to-boost-the-ux-17094b3baaa0

Prototyping Digital Exhibits:

http://www.mnemonic.studio/memo/prototyping-digital-exhibits-part-1/

The Magic of Paper Prototyping:

https://uxplanet.org/the-magic-of-paper-prototyping-51693eac6bc3

Prime Access Consulting:

https://www.pac.bz/

Shivers Down Your Spine:

https://cup.columbia.edu/book/shivers-down-your-spine/9780231129893

Newsletter:
 
Like the episode? Try the newsletter. Making the Museum is also a one-minute email on exhibition planning and design for museum leaders, exhibition teams and visitor experience professionals. Subscribe here: https://www.makingthemuseum.com

About MtM:

Making the Museum is hosted (podcast) and written (newsletter) by Jonathan Alger. This podcast is a project of C&G Partners | Design for Culture. Learn about the firm's creative work at: https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

What’s the very first question we should ask — before we start our projects?

Should we start designing … by designing? How do we make sure we understand our audience, before we start making experiences for them? Why is prototyping so important? How many of our ideas should we expect to survive the creative process? And what does microbiology art have to do with your sense of balance? (Hint: they’re both topics at a certain well-known venue.)

Liza Rawson (Head of Exhibitions, Liberty Science Center) joins Jonathan Alger (Managing Partner, C&G Partners) to discuss why we should “Start With ‘Who’s It For?’”

Along the way: Rubik’s Cubes, how to start a museum career at age 14, and Beverly Serrell’s “big idea”.

Talking Points:

Don’t start designing by designing. Ask questions instead.

1. Start with: who’s it for?
2. What do we want to hear them saying?
3. What do we want to see them doing?
4. What do we want them to feel?
5. What is the “wrap”?
6. What is the “point of engagement”?
7. What do you want them to say when you ask what the goal was?

Guest Bio:
 

Liza Reich Rawson is Head of Exhibitions for Liberty Science Center, a 300,000-square-foot learning center in Jersey City, NJ. She provides leadership and creative vision for exhibition development and design and special projects; manages the traveling exhibition program and oversees the exhibition maintenance and animal husbandry teams. Previously she led award-winning exhibition projects for Brooklyn Children’s Museum and the Brooklyn Historical Society and was adjunct faculty for Johns Hopkins University and Bank Street College museum studies graduate programs. From 2010 to 2020 Liza was the managing editor of the National Association for Museum Exhibition’s premier professional journal Exhibition. Her publications include: “It’s About Them: Using Developmental Frameworks to Create Exhibitions for Children (and Their Grown-Ups)” in Connecting Kids to History with Museum Exhibitions (2009). She holds a BA in Historic Preservation from Goucher College, and an MA in History Museum Studies from the Cooperstown Graduate Program.
 

Show Links:

[email protected]

Liza on LinkedIn

Liberty Science Center

Projects of Note:

Microbes Rule!

Wobbly World

The Building

The Great Train Set

Dino Dig Adventure

SciTechCity

Newsletter:
 

Like the episode? Try the newsletter. Making the Museum is also a one-minute email on exhibition planning and design for museum leaders, exhibition teams and visitor experience professionals. Subscribe here:
https://www.makingthemuseum.com

Cultural projects should be data-driven — but which *kind* of data?

What’s the difference between the “big data” we all know — and “thick data”? Which is more important? (Hint: trick question.) What does cell phone data have to do with sculpture gardens? What’s a “two-hour ring”? What if we just recorded visitors narrating their entire experience — out loud?

Elena Kazlas (Founder, Elevativ) and Adaheid Mestad (Design Anthropologist, HGA) join Jonathan Alger (Managing Partner, C&G Partners) to discuss “Museum Research: Big Data Meets Thick Data”.

Along the way: drawing polygons, the odd truth of Connecticut art museums, and the “streakers, strollers, scholars” model. 

Talking Points:

1. Big Data = Quantitative. Thick Data = Qualitative.

2. Big Data on museum visitors includes demographics, origin/where they are coming from, how long they spend on site, leisure patterns and spending patterns in near real-time.
 

3. Big Data analytics inform business and marketing strategies to support the mission.
 

4. But Big Data (numbers) alone can’t capture the emotions of visitors’ daily lives.
 

5. Thick Data reveals the social, emotional, and cultural context of individuals and their social identity in the place they are in

6. Thick Data is real-time, whole-person context, and can be scaled.

7. Thick Data anchors strategic, programming, and operational decisions on insights derived directly from the perspectives of visitors, members, and community.

8. When Big Data meets Thick Data, we support strategic, efficient, and impactful mission decisions.

Guest Bios:

Elena Kazlas is the Founder & Creator of Elevativ, LLC. Elena has over 25 years’ of international experience in the successful development of non-profit and for-profit projects.She has extensive experience in working with clients as part of iterative planning processes to yield optimal development strategies for socially impactful projects, such as museums, with a special expertise in understanding their market and economic potential. Elena leads Elevativ with a left-brain/right-brain approach to project planning, balancing both quantitative and qualitative elements as they relate to a project’s potential success. Elena is a thought leader and expert in future planning for cultural projects.

Adaheid Mestad, M.A., is a Design Anthropologist currently working at HGA. Ada has over 15 years of experience utilizing social science approaches to translate human experience and sociocultural practices within the built environment. Ada’s philosophy is to engage and design with people, as the experts, to understand social constructs, values, and perspectives throughout a transparent and iterative process. Her ethnographic research informs and evaluates design that strengthens identity, representation, relationships, and sociocultural systems. Ada has worked with innovators, nationally and internationally, to transform experiences and social impact within Healthcare, Workplace strategy, Higher Education, Urban Planning, Government, and Cultural Institutions.

About MtM:

Making the Museum is hosted (podcast) and written (newsletter) by Jonathan Alger. This podcast is a project of C&G Partners | Design for Culture. Learn about the firm's creative work at: https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Show Links:

Elena’s Email: [email protected]
Elena’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elena-kazlas/
Elena’s Website: https://elevativ.co/
Placer.ai: https://www.placer.ai/ (mention Elena Kazlas from Elevativ)

Ada’s Email: [email protected]
Ada’s LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adaheidmestad/
Ada’s Website: https://hga.com/people/adaheid-mestad/
The American Anthropological Association: https://americananthro.org/
EPIC (Ethnography Association): https://www.epicpeople.org/
Thick Data: The term has been popularized by the anthropologist Tricia Wang and built on American Anthropologist Clifford Geertz’s “thick description”: https://medium.com/ethnography-matters/why-big-data-needs-thick-data-b4b3e75e3d7

Newsletter:

Like the episode? Try the newsletter. Making the Museum is also a one-minute email on exhibition planning and design for museum leaders, exhibition teams and visitor experience professionals. Subscribe here: https://www.makingthemuseum.com

What if there were just five important things to remember when you build a museum?
  

What if the most important one of them all — had nothing to do with architecture? Which costs more in the end: building the museum, or operating the building? (The answer might surprise you.) Is it better to be bold, or to be subtle? What’s the difference between how design teams experience a museum project — and how visitors experience it in the end?

Jonathan Alger (Managing Partner, C&G Partners) is joined by David Greenbaum, FAIA (museum architect, Gensler) to discuss How to Build a Museum. Hint: it all boils down to five things you’ll want to remember.

Along the way: designing a 200-year building, historic re-enactors, cap-ex versus op-ex, and the “elephant-dog-gerbil principle”.

Talking Points:

1. The Importance of “Esprit de Corps” —

(Team spirit.) It starts with the client’s clear vision, ambition, high expectations and drive. Informal relationships outside the org chart make cross-disciplinary collaboration easier. Team spirit is vital because there will be many challenges down the road.    

2. Consider the Full Life Cycle —

Mission, Vision, Design, Construction, Operations. Museums do fail. Look at projects holistically. Museum buildings are a substantial investment, but the capital costs will be outstripped by operational costs in short order.

3. Celebrate the Uniqueness — 

Be bold or be subtle. But be memorable. Each museum project offers an opportunity to help distinguish itself in the community it serves. Make visitors feel something.  

4. There is One Visitor Experience —

Art, architecture, and interpretation need to be integrated. It all adds up to form one experience. Close collaboration is key along with the client and design teams.

5. Build to Last —

Design with flexibility in mind.  Change is inevitable and sometimes unpredictable. Provide a robust infrastructure for technology.  Use long lasting materials and building systems.

Guest Bio:

David Greenbaum, FAIA, is an expert in the design of museums, performing arts venues, visitor

attractions, institutional, and mixed-use projects. In a 40-year career that includes multiple projects of national significance for the Smithsonian Institution, The National Gallery of Art, the Architect of the Capitol, and other sites in the U.S. and overseas, David has developed an international practice in museum design and comparable visitor attractions, with a particular interest in the development of cultural districts. His project work has been recognized with over 75 national and regional design honors and published in more than 300 articles, underscoring the importance of his work in the architectural and museum communities, as well as the larger public realm. David served as the 2019 Chairman of AIA National Committee on Design. After almost 35 years at SmithGroup, David changed paths to start helping clients develop and implement the planning and design of their cultural facilities. At Gensler, he now works with cultural institutions to help put the parts in place for enabling successful projects. He has great capacity for integrating the team and advancing complex projects to enable success.

About MtM:

Making the Museum is hosted (podcast) and written (newsletter) by Jonathan Alger. 

This podcast is a project of C&G Partners | Design for Culture. Learn about the firm's creative work at: https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Show Links for This Episode:

David by Email: [email protected]

David by Phone: +1 (202) 257-7592

David on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-greenbaum-faia/

General Show Links:

Website: https://www.makingthemuseum.com/contact

Jonathan’s Email: [email protected]

Jonathan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanalger

C&G Partners: https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Newsletter:

Like the episode? Try the newsletter! Making the Museum is also a one-minute email on exhibition planning and design for museum leaders, exhibition teams and visitor experience professionals. Subscribe here:
https://www.makingthemuseum.com

What’s the #1 thing to know about experiential technology?
  

How long do LED walls last? (The answer will surprise you.) Is a project done when it opens, or are growing pains normal? What happens when you use technology just to have technology? What’s an “integrator”? Is sustainability a thing in experiential tech? How? What missteps waste money, ruin the experience, and let content go stale?

Jonathan Alger (Managing Partner, C&G Partners) is joined by Will Bullins (Executive Consultant, Electrosonic) to go over six Experiential Tech Insights you’ll want to remember.

Along the way: AVIXA, a little wonking out on pixel pitch distance formulas, and of course, the Las Vegas Sphere.

Talking Points:

1. Never use technology just to have technology.

2. Be clear about your true goals.

3. Growing pains are normal, after opening.

4. Sustainability is a thing.

5. Discuss fears, budgets and timeframes openly and often.

6. Start the discussion early, even if briefly.

Guest Bio:
  

Will Bullins brings over ten years of creative technology design to his role as Executive Consultant. He has worked on a wide range of high-profile experiential projects which helps give him a strong blend of creativity and technical design skills. Will is passionate about human-centered design and how to use technology in a way that works best for the user. His intention is not to design technology systems for the sake of designing but rather to design a system that will help facilitate the experience the client is trying to create. To deliver that solution he recognizes it is important to develop effective partnerships with architects, experience designers, content creators, and fabricators.
 
About MtM:

Making the Museum is hosted (podcast) and written (newsletter) by Jonathan Alger. 

This podcast is a project of C&G Partners | Design for Culture. Learn about the firm's creative work at: https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Show Links:

Will’s Email: [email protected]

Will on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/will-bullins-cts-d-b2ba4724/

Electrosonic Website: www.electrosonic.com

MtM Show Contact:

https://www.makingthemuseum.com/contact

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanalger

[email protected]

https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Newsletter:
 
Like the episode? Try the newsletter. Making the Museum is also a one-minute email on exhibition planning and design for museum leaders, exhibition teams and visitor experience professionals. Subscribe here:
https://www.makingthemuseum.com

What if there were a better way?
 
Are the normal exhibition planning and design methods actually way too risky — and is there a way to “de-risk” them? Are our concepts not good enough, because we’re not developing enough of them, fast enough? What would happen if we merged effective web techniques like “Agile” with established physical development processes like “Waterfall”?

Jonathan Alger (Managing Partner, C&G Partners) is joined by Clare Brown (PhD candidate and Creative Director at G&A) to explore “Rapid Experience Design”, a new approach to the typical development process that Clare is researching for her doctorate.

Along the way: adventure education, the tyranny of the floor plan, some rollerskating, and listening to a doctoral candidate think about her project in real time.

Talking Points:

1. The usual approach to exhibition design — “waterfall” — isn’t the only way.

2.  We can combine approaches from outside the exhibition world to make something new.

3. Focus on creating experiences first, spatial arrangements later.

4. This new approach can “de-risk” a project.

5. The process was inspired by teaching fast courses.

6. Changing established processes teaches you about change itself.

Guest Bio:
 

Clare Brown has led teams creating museum experiences for the past 25 years. She is currently Creative Director at G&A, an experience design company where she guides creative process and cultivates human-centered design practices. In addition to professional practice, Clare's background includes design education and 'design as research', through her role as Chair and Assistant Professor of Design at the Corcoran College of Art & Design, and in pursuing a PhD in Experience Design and Collaborative Creativity. She brings to her work a background growing up as a '3rd Culture Kid' in Africa and Asia, working in the theater, and pursuing degrees in Cultural Anthropology and Museum Studies. Clare embraces dance, roller skating, and flying trapeze among many forms of physical movement to deepen her understanding of resilience, risk, joy, and creativity.

About MtM:

Making the Museum is hosted (podcast) and written (newsletter) by Jonathan Alger. 

This podcast is a project of C&G Partners | Design for Culture. Learn about the firm's creative work at:
https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Show Links:

Clare on LinkedIn:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/clarebrown/
 

MtM Show Contact:

https://www.makingthemuseum.com/contact

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanalger

[email protected]

https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Newsletter:

Like the episode? Try the newsletter. Making the Museum is also a one-minute email on exhibition planning and design for museum leaders, exhibition teams and visitor experience professionals. Subscribe here:
https://www.makingthemuseum.com