Many museums present exhibitions about architecture and design. In doing so, they typically treat buildings and other designed objects much as they do paintings, drawings, or sculptures — as individual creative works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or craftsmanship.

The National Building Museum approaches this subject matter quite differently. Its mission is to examine the broader cultural implications of the “built environment,” and to reveal the profound impact of architecture, engineering, and urban planning on people’s lives. Rather than simply displaying countless discrete artifacts of our built heritage, the National Building Museum instead seeks to present coherent stories—stories that not only inform visitors’ understanding of the past and present, but also suggest possibilities for a better world in the future.

To achieve these goals, the Museum has developed a unique approach to the organization of exhibitions and education programs, with an unusually strong emphasis on the visitor’s experience. The Museum’s approach to exhibition and program development will be the subject of this presentation.

In this session, you will:

* Learn about the National Building Museum’s unique mission and identity

* Discover how the Museum engages diverse audiences through innovative exhibition content and design

* Learn to the Museum’s renowned, hands-on educational programming

About Martin Moeller

Martin Moeller is Senior Vice President and Curator at the National Building Museum. He has been the lead curator for various exhibitions including “Liquid Stone: New Architecture in Concrete” and “Reinventing the Globe: A Shakespearean Theater for the 21st Century.” In addition to his curatorial duties, Moeller edits the Museum’s quarterly magazine, “Blueprints”, and frequently represents the Museum on television and radio programs. He also coordinated the Museum’s recent symposium series, “Building in the Aftermath”, examining the implications of Hurricane Katrina for the built environment.

He previously served as the Museum’s Executive Vice President, overseeing all exhibitions, education programs, development, and administrative operations. He stepped down from this role in 2001 in order to have more time to pursue independent writing and consulting projects.

Before joining the Museum in 1998, Moeller served as Executive Director of the Association of Collegiate Schools of Architecture. Prior to that, he was Executive Director of the Washington Chapter of the American Institute of Architects.

Moeller holds a Master of Architecture degree from Tulane University. He is the author of the fourth edition of the “AIA Guide to the Architecture of Washington, D.C.”, published by the Johns Hopkins University Press in November 2006. He was co-editor of “Liquid Stone: New Architecture in Concrete”, which was published in English by Princeton Architectural Press in June 2006, and in French under the title “Architectures du béton: Nouvelles vagues, nouvelles recherches”, by Le Moniteur Press.