Renewal/replacement cycles for different parts of a building:

–Site –Structure

–Skin–Services–Scenery

–Stuff

In a Building. . .

In a Theater. . .

Ultimately, the purpose of the theater is to provide a platform for the presentation of a story.

In a Museum. . .

The spaces and galleries of a museum are a platform to support the experiences of the visitor.

Programs provide the script, the content and the conversation.

The action is provided by people – the staff, volunteers and most importantly the visitors.

People with people

When visitors are led by a live person facilitator.

Programs. . .

People with stuff

How we depend on stuff to do the facilitation.

Exhibits. . .

Programs and exhibitions can be inextricable partners.

When the planning for each is done simultaneously, they are able to each serve multiple purposes and support

each other.

Discovery Gateway has

– a fabulous new facility triple our old size,

– developed world class exhibits and

– consistently increased and improved programming.

Discovery Gateway is about: •Sharing the moment of Discovery•Collaborating to get the job done•Creating new skills and opportunities for yourself, your group and for your world.

Special emphasis on•Visitors shape the activity (i.e. open-ended),•Encourage interaction between people•Relate to the world we live and work in

Theory:

Understanding our programming goals and defining portfolio of programs, we can then set out to create exhibits that can support the needs of those programs.

Then we can look back at the exhibit we have created and come up with more programs that could be supported by the same platform.

The Challenge

The First case study:

1) We began with what we wanted to do and the kinds of activity we wanted to encourage.

2) We then came up with ways to support those activities.

Size: 100 lf (about 1000 sf)Development: 7 weeksBudget: less than $500

Knock your Socks Off!

The Studio

Goal: To create the programming, and the spaces to support that programming, where visitors can:

• Use open-ended challenges and projects to solve problems and/or explore (ask “What can I do with this?”)

• Engage in conversations with other visitors and across generations, or through interaction with visiting professionals.

• Do something different each time they come. (i.e. flexible)

How we are doing it:Provide a variety of tools around the perimeter for visitors to use as they participate in regularly changing projects, or pursue un-facilitated open-ended activities.

– Shake Table– Peg Table– Kaleidoscope– Magnets– Wind Tunnel– Fans– Light Table– Experiment Wall– Wentzscope– Turntable

Things we must watch out for as we move forward:

• We need participation from as many disciplines as possible.

• We must support each other’s work. • Staff can use spaces that are truly

theirs.

Some Observations

When we actively plan for what people will do in a space,

it becomes exciting and dynamic.

Galleries do change quickly and often.

Things we must watch out for as we move forward:

• Manage schedule carefully.– Work will always expand to fill the time.– Program and exhibit development take

different amounts of time. Schedules have to be re-aligned regularly.

• Guard your money. – Flexibility is expensive.

• Encourage realistic expectations. – Open communication!