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When was the last time a museum blew you away?

  • 1.  When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:11 PM
    Hi all.

    When was the last time you went to a museum and had your mind blown?  A time when you were surprised, maybe.  Or impressed.  Or did something totally new to you.

    I'd love to hear about some of those experiences and the museums (and museum staff) that provided them.

    Best,
    Rachel

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    Rachel Ropeik
    Senior Museum Educator
    Brooklyn Museum of Art
    Brooklyn NY
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  • 2.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:21 PM
    A few years ago I while visiting the San Jose Museum of Art (California) I entered another world quite by accident. I love paintings and sculpture and will state out right I loathe graffiti and gimmicky nothings claiming to be art. To me, art is beauty; a gift to the world and not adding to the ugliness we can not control. With that being said, there was an exhibit occupying an entire small room called, The Listening Post by Mark Hansen and Ben Rubin. Using Hansen and Rubin's backgrounds in experimental sound and as a Bell Labs statistician,  this room full of computer screens monitored all the text messages in real time from online communities. The words would appear on the monitors and the most frequently used words would be spoken around you by computer from anywhere and everywhere.

    There was a bench in the center of the room where you could sit quietly to this oracle that somehow gave you a message you needed to hear. It was a profound spiritual experience. If I had a million dollars I would have offered it to these two to create one for myself!

    It has toured many places and I hope to experience it again someday. I've included a review with more information.
    http://modes.io/listening-post-ten-years-on/

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    Uriél Dana
    Fine Artist/Restorer
    Oakland CA
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  • 3.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:21 PM
    More anticipation of mind blowing - can hardly wait for the Aga Khan Museum to open here in Toronto! https://www.agakhanmuseum.org/

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    M. Christine Castle PhD
    Editor, Museum Education Monit
    Whitby ON
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  • 4.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:21 PM
    In July, I visited the Grohmann Museum in Milwaukee, which is part of the Milwaukee School of Engineering. The museum houses a collection of art that chronicles work, from about the 15th century. While it is an art collection, the labels are very focused on explaining the work represented in the paintings, from the medical profession and lawyering to barrel-making and farming. It was fascinating -- both to learn what it meant to be a doctor 500 years ago, and to see art displayed with a clear sociological purpose.

    In August I visited the Art Gallery of Ontario, and saw - among other exhibitions - "Art as Therapy." For this exhibition, the philosophers Alain de Botton and John Armstrong selected work that fit into themes (sex, work, and nature, for example). They wrote labels that explained how the work related to that theme, and their related philosophical questions. This exhibition didn't quite work - the questions weren't as engaging as they might have been, and the concept itself was not clearly explained. It was, however, a great way to consider works of art (and relates to a recent personal exploration of mine, When is Inquiry with Art Philosophical Inquiry? 

    According to the AAM site, neither of these museums are accredited. I was not surprised about the Grohmann Museum, which only opened in 1007, but I was surprised that the AGO is not listed as accredited by AAM - but then, as Christine Castle pointed out, few museums in Canada are.


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    Rebecca Herz
    Independant Consultant
    Peoria IL
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  • 5.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:21 PM
    I was fortunate to attend the ALHFAM conference in Calgary this summer.  Heritage Park did, in fact, blow me away. I was awestruck by the entire visitor experience and highly recommend a trip for anyone in the outdoor history museum genre. 

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    Ruth Haus
    President
    Living History Farms
    Urbandale IA
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  • 6.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:21 PM
    I recently visited the Asian Art Museum in SF and was impressed with the casual, first-person tone of the labels in the Gorgeous exhibition.
    SARAH JESSE

    ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT OF EDUCATION
     WWW.LACMA.ORG
    T 323.857.6235 
    E SJESSE@LACMA.ORG







  • 7.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:21 PM
    Great question Rachel! A tough one too. I find that the longer I am in the field, the harder it is to "blow me away." Although I'm a tough critic, I also think my definition of "blown away" has changed. I can't turn my critic button off so it's hard to simply enjoy a museum anymore. However, I recall one installation in particular--Janet Cardiff's 40 Part Motet installation, which I first saw at the Cleveland Museum of Art in their Italian Baroque gallery. The music called me into that area of the museum and filled me with wonder--a feast for the eyes and ears--as I was surround literally and figurative by sound and art. It was only surpassed by The Cloisters installation of that same piece, which I saw later that year. Everyone (in both museums) was transfixed, taking in sights and sounds. I find it hard to describe the sensation, but I've never felt anything like it and it will stay with me always. Talk about a great visitor experience. I commend both museums for providing a small palm card that explained the piece and then stepping out of the way so that one could enjoy it. Nicely set-up and executed on both accounts.

    Looking forward to reading other's responses,
    Sara

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    Sara Devine
    Manager, Interpretive Materials
    Brooklyn Museum of Art
    Brooklyn NY
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  • 8.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:40 PM
    Oh man, Sara, I am SO right there with you.  I only saw The Cloisters installation of that piece... "saw" doesn't even seem to be the applicable word.  Experienced might be better.

    So simple and so so powerful.  I went in expecting to pay a brief visit and ended up spending almost an hour in that one room moving around, listening, watching people, closing my eyes.  So fantastic, and definitely a memory I'll hold onto of a museum blowing me away.


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    Rachel Ropeik
    Senior Museum Educator
    Brooklyn Museum of Art
    Brooklyn NY
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  • 9.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:40 PM
    What a great question Rachel!

    Last month, several of my colleagues and I had the opportunity to try something new. We were invited, via Elizabeth Merritt, to the Phillips Collection to engage in a new art enrichment program called Art-O-Mancy (read about it on the Center for the Future of Museums blog www.futureofmuseums.blogspot.com/2014/06/turning-museum-into-personal-oracle.html). This program, or more appropriately this game, was developed by Laurie Phillips and her husband Jon Spayde and it turns any museum into your own personal oracle. 

    In short, the Art-O-Mancer (you) comes to the museum with an open ended life question that needs answering. You are blindfolded and led by an experienced and trained Oracle Guide around the gallery (they try to disorient you so you don't know where you are - it works too). You also get to direct the Guide by saying left, right, forward, backward etc., wherever your body (or soul) is directing you to go. When you feel it is right, you stop and the blindfold is removed. You then interact with wherever you are in the space. Sometimes it is in front of a work of art or an object, sometimes it isn't. There were a few people in our group who did not end up with a piece of art and they still had profound experiences.

    I went with one question in mind, "do I need to downsize my life?" I found my way to a painting that - to tell you the truth - I would have walked right past otherwise. It was a beautiful watercolor painting titled "Waterfall, Haiti" by Gifford Beal. The reaction I had was amazing! It certainly wasn't what I was expecting, and it answered my question completely.

    Do I need to downsize? Yes, you do! Look at this woman carrying water on her head. She is working, yet she is content. She is not stressed. She has her village, just beyond those trees and this beautiful setting, and she is happy. Simplify. Easy as that! It was the most cathartic moment I've ever had with a particular work of art.

    Because I've been so ensconced in working in and for museums for so long I lose sight of how profound experiences with particular objects can be, and that is why I wanted to work in museums in the first place. I'm so busy reading the labels and trying to learn what the artist meant by those brush strokes or investigating how that object was installed in the case that I forget it isn't always about that, it's about how that particular item makes me feel.

    Truly inspiring and mind blowing!

    Art-O-Mancy is a stand alone project based out of Minneapolis, MN but available around the country (www.art-o-mancy.com). Check it out, and if you have an opportunity to try it - I definitely recommend!

    Cecelia


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    Cecelia Walls
    Information Center Manager
    American Alliance of Museums
    Washington DC
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  • 10.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:42 PM
    Cecelia, I'm glad to hear a first-person perspective about this, since it was a CFM post I loved and something I'd love to bring into my own museum work.

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    Rachel Ropeik
    Senior Museum Educator
    Brooklyn Museum of Art
    Brooklyn NY
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  • 11.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:45 PM
    I would say the last time that a museum blew me away was my visit to the City Museum in Saint Louis last March. I was with my mom and had been recommended the museum by fellow museum lovers. We went on a Friday night. The museum is basically a massive maze. You can spend the whole time exploring an adult-sized jungle gym outside, climbing on it. You can try sliding down the ramps of a skate park in your socks. You can go down a 5 story slide.

    All in all, it is about the experience. Imbedding the idea of 'wonder' and 'exploration' into the mentality that people walk into the space with. There is no map, there is also no direct 'learning initiative.' Instead, I took away that they were focused on cultivating a mentality of creativity, community, playfulness, and exploration. Definitely made me rethink about the purpose of a museum and its central objectives.

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    Katherine Nammacher
    Evaluation Associate
    Oakland Museum of California
    Oakland CA
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  • 12.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:45 PM
    I am blown away every time I walk into a museum. This might be because I am not difficult to please. Each museum offers a new opportunity to learn, new means of interpreting art, science, history, etc... So generally I enjoy every museum. However, I was blown away at the EMP up in Seattle at AAM last year. Like many high school kids of my generation (envision dark band shirt, blue jeans, flannel, posters of Nirvana and Pearl Jam), I purchased and then neglected a sweet Fender Strat. I still had hopes that I would learn to play through osmosis, and someday be in the world's greatest Led Zeppelin cover band. So when I went up to the third floor of the EMP and they had drums, guitars, and microphones, all of my faded high school dreams of rock and roll glory came true. It was awesome.

    Cheers,

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    Anthony Pennay
    Director, Annenberg Learning Center
    Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation
    Simi Valley CA
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  • 13.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 09-30-2014 05:45 PM
    In May I visited the EMP Museum in Seattle and was completely blown away by their Fantasy: Worlds of Myth and Magic exhibit. What particularly stood out to me was their attempt to create a totally immersive experience in which you felt like you were actually in the story. For example, to supplement a narrative about humble beginnings of unlikely heroes they actually spread hay along the floor to give the sensation of a barn or farm. There was also lighting, sound and even smell that correlated to the objects and stories they were telling. I have often heard of this type of exhibit being referred to as the Disneyland effect, where the museum creates almost an amusement park feel, but for this exhibit it worked really well. It also pretty awesome to see some of the iconic costumes and props used in the Princess Bride!
    http://www.empmuseum.org/at-the-museum/current-exhibits/fantasy-worlds-of-myth-and-magic.aspx

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    Polly Toledo
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  • 14.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 10-01-2014 09:03 AM

    For me one of the museums I will never forget is Head Smashed In Buffalo Jump  a UNESCO World Heritage Site in southern Alberta - just north across the international boundary from Glacier National Park (see here).

    Their website can describe the uniqueness of the site better than I:  Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump is an archaeological site known around the world as a remarkable testimony of the life of the Plains People through the millennia. The Jump bears witness to a method of hunting practiced by native people of the North American plains for nearly 6,000 years.  Due to their excellent understanding of the regional topography and bison behaviour, native people hunted bison by stampeding them over a precipice. They then carved up the carcasses and dragged the pieces to be butchered and processed in the butchering camp set up on the flats beyond the cliffs.


    Here is the link to the UNESCO brochure for the site.

    What I remember is looking at a cliff that was maybe 25 feet high. Our museum guide informed our group that the cliff was, in fact, closer to 60 feet. And that archaeologists when they excavated to the bottom of the cliff to explore the remains of bison driven over the cliff they passed through over 36 feet of bison bones that were deposited there over 5,700 years with the earliest drive dating as far back as 10,000 years ago.

    The museum and interpretive center is of a unique design and helps the museum visitor understand the site physically as you enter at the bottom of the cliff, go immediately to the top and then work your way down going back in time. 

         

    Entrance Interior View


    SAM
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    Samuel Shogren MPA
    In Transition - Currently Seeking New Opportunities
    Beaverton OR
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    Original Message


  • 15.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 10-01-2014 01:38 PM
    I love this question and the responses so far!

    Most recently I was blown away by the Exploratorium in San Francisco, CA (http://www.exploratorium.edu). I had not visited their new site along the waterfront, and was able to attend a night event a month ago. Everything in the space excited me.  I was especially captivated by their map space on the second floor.  One intriguing installation was a table top topography map with a projector overhead. The visitor could press a button and turn a dial to see the fog patterns and additional weather patterns from the past 24 hours. Absolutely engaging and fun.

    Best, 
    LINDSAY

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    Lindsay Palaima
    Associate Exhibits Registrar
    California Academy of Sciences
    San Francisco CA
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  • 16.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 10-02-2014 06:42 PM
    The Newport Aquarium in Newport, KY is one of our favorite family trip destinations. The exhibition habitats are thoughtful and very well maintained. I highly recommend it for anyone within the Midwest!

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    Craig Hadley
    Director and Curator of Exhibitions and University Collections
    Richard E. Peeler Art Center DePauw University
    Greencastle IN
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    Original Message


  • 17.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 10-02-2014 06:41 PM
    I was recently in St. Paul and visited the History Center. It was amazing! I usually find it hard to engage with exhibits because the museum professional in me gets in the way--critiquing and evaluating. For the first time in a while, I was really able to just enjoy the exhibits and the content, they were just delivered that well. My favorite exhibitions were the Then, Now, Wow! and Toys from the 50s, 60s, and 70s. 

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    Elizabeth Bazan
    Mary Ann MacLean Educator
    Illinois State Museum
    Springfield IL
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  • 18.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 10-06-2014 10:38 AM
    Hi All,

    I find that different museum experiences can have that mind-blowing effect. Sometimes it is the overall experience of what you are seeing, but I find other moments occur when observing the individuals who are also experiencing the museum with you. My most recent experience that stands out was actually this summer at the Brooklyn Museum. It was my first time visiting and I was extremely excited because I LOVE Judy Chicago's The Dinner Party. 

    Though The Dinner Party was already making my experience incredible, I was surprised and greatly impressed by my fellow visitors. In the room, there was a young woman with four young girls (ages 7 to 12?). The young woman was encouraging the girls to walk slowly around the art, find a piece that was particularly of interest, and then tell her. She would then look up the individual mentioned in the setting on her cellphone and tell the girls a fact about them. The girls then spent time recreating their own place setting for The Dinner Party in sketch books along with talking about the good deeds and impact that they want to someday have. 

    I love seeing adults engage with children in a museum, which sometimes is not as common as we would hope. This young woman really was wonderful. She used technology to enhance their experience which was also quite interesting. The girls were enthralled and spent even more time in the room than I did! 

    Excellent question!

    Sincerely,

    Ashley 
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    Ashley Scotto
    Education Assistant
    Historic Speedwell
    Morristown, NJ
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    Original Message


  • 19.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 10-06-2014 12:13 PM
    This summer I got to visit the Greensboro Science Center in Greensboro, NC. The center consists of two parts:  the museum collections, housed indoors, and a small zoo out back.  The museum was about typical for your standard science collections, but the zoo was fantastic!  You wouldn't really expect to see too much animal diversity in an institution that isn't primarily a zoo, and isn't located in a huge city, but in fact the animals they had there were great!  It was amazing to be able to see monkeys, lemurs, anteaters, wolves - and tigers!  My companion that day remarked that he's never seen tigers that close up before.  Plus, they had a few Javan Gibbons, which we were informed are very rare to see in captivity, and there was a cute little juvenile gibbon who is now the background on my phone.  In addition, the Center also has a "Sci-quarium" which contains a very interesting selection of marine animals (rays, small sharks, penguins. etc).

    I'll admit I get the warm fuzzies around animals, which may be coloring my perception, but it was truly amazing to see an institution which is able to care for and present these animals while also maintaining the traditional collections and exhibits of a science museum.  The weekend after I visited, one of my colleagues brought her two sons, ages 10 and 12, to the Greensboro Science and reported that they spent nearly all day there. I would say that any museum that can equally capture the attention of adults and children is doing a pretty good job in my book.

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    Miriam Musco
    Director of Education
    Science Museum of Western Virginia
    Roanoke VA
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  • 20.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 10-07-2014 11:46 AM

    For me it was an almost unnoticeable element at the Steinbeck Museum in Salinas.  While exploring the Grapes of Wrath section on my own, I noticed a knot hole that was back lit.  I bent down at a very awkward angle, almost straining my back, to see that there was text inside.  The text read something like, "Field workers often had very sore backs from bending over their tools all day."  I wish every exhibit could incorporate similar kinesthetic learning experiences that surprise and enlighten the way this one did.

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    Dana Neitzel
    Curator
    San Mateo County Historical Association
    Redwood City CA
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    Original Message


  • 21.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 10-08-2014 09:26 AM
    For me it was a visit to the Monterey Bay Aquarium a few years ago. It is just an amazing place doing tremendous science. But what impressed me most was how every single staff person I encountered there shared and communicated a passion for what they do, and equally, for enhancing my learning. I expect this from the docents and exhibit explainers on the floor who did a great job, but even the staff at the ticket counter and gift shop shared insights with me into the Aquarium's research activities and their impact. To have every level of staff member so engaged in their mission, and my education of it, made me feel really enriched as a visitor. ------------------------------------------- Jennifer Brundage National Outreach Manager Smithsonian Institution Washington DC -------------------------------------------
    Original Message


  • 22.  RE: When was the last time a museum blew you away?

    Posted 10-10-2014 10:45 AM
    I'm going to go with the Lower East Side Tenement Museum in NYC.

    I had high expectations going in - every museum person I know raves about it - and it exceeded expectations on every level.

    A great tour and an amazing space. The insight into the past provided by the building itself and the extensive research on its residents and their lives is so powerful. It personalizes the past,
    while connecting it to the present in a compelling and memorable way. In addition, they seem to be fully integrated with their neighborhood and are an active part of their community.

    My only disappointment was that I couldn't do more than one tour in the time I had; a disappointment tempered by my plan to go back every time I'm in NYC and hopefully catch some of their other programs as well, particularly those dealing with more contemporary issues.

    There is also a fantastic gift shop with so many urban history books, ooooh aaaah!

    Julie


    Original Message