Open Forum

Hello museum peeps,

My institution is about to embark on a project that involves designing a new exit way for our museum. At present visitors enter and exit through the same doors, which as you can imagine gets messy. We are going to cut an exit way in a wall on the exterior of our gift shop and direct visitors to exit through there (cliche I know...). However, we aren't sure how we are going to direct people to exit through the new exit way and not through the entry way. Any suggestions? Can anyone direct me to information or studies on museum exit way-finding? Thank you! 

Some of the important factors in visitor movement include: (1) visual cues (e.g., is it obvious where to go?); (2) clear and easy to see direction signage and clarity of pathways; (3) avoiding obstacles (e.g., incoming crowds as one exits); (4) minimizing the number of steps involved in navigating.  

You are wise to physically separate those who exit from those who enter, although the same general space can be used as long as the entrance and exit pathways are clear to visitors.  I have several articles and book chapters on visitor navigation (orientation and circulation) that I am willing to share if you email me at steveb@jsu.edu.  

Good luck on the project.  I highly recommend a simple mock-up of your plan to try out before making any permanent changes.  It's amazing how much you can learn by watching what people do.  It's easy to make improvements if the factors in your setting are flexible.  Visitors don't always do what you expect them to do, but when you see what they actually do, it usually makes sense.

Steve Bitgood