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Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

  • 1.  Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-17-2019 11:17 AM

    Hello all, 

    I've been asked to create more "whimsical" signs for some chairs on display. They currently say "Please Do Not Sit" but leadership would like something more playful for a more positive experience when interacting with the displays. Are there any good examples out there for more positive messaging? 

    Thanks!



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    Cindy Olsen
    Director of Curation and Content Activation
    Ilitch Holdings
    Detroit, Michigan
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 2.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-18-2019 08:48 AM
    This reminds me of some clever alternatives to "Please Curb your Dog" at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. Instead, they featured facts about trees and why it's important to pick up after your pet (examples attached). Perhaps instead of "Do not sit" you could have an interesting point about the piece and the consequences of touching it. So the sign becomes both educational and functional.

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    Johanna Goldfeld Design, LLC
    Graphic and Exhibition Design
    Tel: 718-789-1238
    Visit my website: www.jgoldfeld-design.com

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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 3.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-18-2019 09:35 AM
      |   view attached
    Chairs are a special case in that they are screaming out to be sat on! This reminded me of a label that made me laugh out loud in the Tubman Museum in Macon, GA. At the time, they had Little Richard's piano on display (another object that is crying out to be touched!) with no ropes or stanchions. Instead, they had a small label that read, "Do not attempt to play Little Richard's piano. He will know." It was unexpected, playful, and got the point across.

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    Nicole Cromartie
    Director of Education and Programs
    Clyfford Still Museum
    Denver CO
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 4.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-18-2019 10:47 AM
      |   view attached
    Have you considered not using any words at all to convey "do not sit?"

    Years ago, in Paris at the Musee de la Chasse et de la Nature, I saw this clever use of placing a spiny dried thistle on the seats of each of the chairs. It immediately communicated that you were not to sit here. Since then, I've seen this strategy used in various other museums around the world. 


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    Mark Schlemmer
    Registrar for Collections
    New-York Historical Society
    New York NY
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 5.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-18-2019 11:49 AM

    I'm not sure how whimsical these are, but here are my ideas:

    • Please enjoy by looking, NOT sitting. (Maybe replace words like looking and sitting with graphics)
    • Look all you want, but please do not sit on the chair.
    • No behinds allowed. (Graphic with a person sitting on a chair with an X over it)
    • Not all chairs are for sitting. Please look but not touch.
    • Looking (thumbs up emoji) Sitting (thumbs down emoji)


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    Katelyn Jaworski
    Museum Educator
    Arizona Museum of Natural History
    Mesa AZ
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 6.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-18-2019 01:54 PM
    Used to work at a house museum, with a lot of elderly visitors. All the chairs had a propped up sign that read "Please notify the docent if you need a seat. They'd be happy to help you."

    Not very whimsical, but very clear for those more persistent sitters.

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    Kristi Moore
    CEO/Owner
    Moore Archives & Preservation
    Fredericksburg VA
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 7.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-18-2019 02:10 PM

    How about "reserved for the Invisible Man"?




    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 8.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-19-2019 09:12 AM
    This only looks like a chair.  It actually is a historical artifact.
    Thank you for contributing to historic preservation by finding another seat.

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    Deborah Bigness
    Manager of Site Operations, Lubbock Lake National Historic Landmark
    Museum of Texas Tech University
    Lubbock TX
    deborah.bigness@ttu.edu
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 9.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-19-2019 09:27 AM
    I wish I could remember where I saw it, but they had small No Parking traffic signs with the picture of a person sitting with the red circle with a slash on it.

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    Suzanne McGarraugh
    Exhibit Design Specialist
    Mountmaking & Installation
    San Antonio, TX
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 10.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-19-2019 03:07 PM
    Edited by Paula Phipps 06-19-2019 03:08 PM
      |   view attached
    ​I created pillows that include a sketch of the family dog.  With the thought of telling dogs to SIT this tells guests NOT to sit!

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    Paula Phipps
    Nemours Estate
    Wilmington DE
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 11.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-20-2019 12:15 PM
    A riff off of something my parents told me as a child: "Look with your eyes, not your behind". They always said "hands", but you get the idea.

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    Clara Scillian Kennedy
    Albany Regional Museum (Volunteer)
    Johns Hopkins University Museum Studies Program (Student)
    Albany OR
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 12.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-21-2019 06:20 AM
    Hi Cindy, Looks like this is winding down, but, hey, I'll bite. How about "Retired from Service/(Please don't touch)" with a graphic of a gold watch or something else that's thematically appropriate to your site. (Anyone under 50 get the gold watch meaning?) Good luck - and see you in Philadelphia at #AASLH2019. Dean

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    Dean Krimmel, Interpretive & Exhibition Planning
    Creative Museum Services/Qm2
    deankrimmel@qm2.org; 410-746-8350
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 13.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-21-2019 07:29 AM
      |   view attached
    Pillow with preacher with raised hands saying "please do not sit"One suggestion is to think about using design for the wit, rather than text alone. At the Peabody Essex Museum's Ropes Mansion, a genteel New England home with origins, designer Karen Moreau-Ceballos designed an embroidery-look pillow featuring a stern-looking preacher. These are a really popular element of the display, making visitors laugh instead of feel put off. Photo credit:
    https://saveig.com/p/Bx8ROAQlbFH/

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    Michelle Moon
    Chief Program Officer
    Tenement Museum
    New York, NY
    mmoon@tenement.org
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more


  • 14.  RE: Whimsical "Do Not Sit" signs

    Posted 06-21-2019 10:54 AM
    So many great ideas! I have also heard discussion of signage in the theme of "Save our seat" or "seat saved", instead of "reserved" it is changed to "Preserved".

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    Catherine Burkhart
    Executive Director/Curator
    Carnegie Museum of Montgomery County
    Crawfordsville IN
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    AAM Annual Meeting & MuseumExpo, Baltimore, May 16-19, 2024, click to learn more