SITE SELECTION CRITERIA
FUNCTIONAL COMPONENTS
Museum An organization in the service of society and its development, open to the public, which researches,
communicates and exhibits things and ideas, for the purposes of education, study and enjoyment.
1. Many museums are non-collecting, so a museum is not about displaying a collection
2. Some museums are for profit, so a museum cant be defined by tax status
3. Some museums dont have a building or a home, so it is not about a location
Exhibition: An event at which displays are put out in a public space for people to view and interact
Design The making of a plan for the construction of an object or a system
Museum Exhibition Design that can apply to all the different types of museums?
Science Center
Natural History Museum
Airport Museum
Natural History Museum
Traveling Exhibition
Art Museum
History Museum
Aquarium
Mobile Museum
On line Museum / Virtual Museum
Zoological Park
Botanic Garden
Museum Exhibition Design: The making of a plan for the construction of public displays for the purposes of
education, study and enjoyment, in the service of society and its development.
The museum exhibition design process can be divided into five distinct phases:
Concept Development
Schematic Design
Design Development
Final Design
Exhibition Design Process Concept Development Schedule: budget development
Concept Development provides the road map for the project, where is the project going? how will it get Schematic Design Phase deliverables: bound II x 17 booklets + electronic master copy
there? and a definition of the resources available to complete the project. Concept Development is culminated
with the signing of a Project Charter outlining all of the components of the project.
Project Objectives
Concept
Look and Feel
Style Board Exhibition Narrative
Design Process Schematic Design Bubble Diagram
The goal of Schematic Design, is to flesh out the scope and character 0f the project. This enables all parties involved to
confirm themes, interpretation goals and to review spatial arrangements, appearance, artifact use, materials and cost.
By the end of the Schematic Design phase, the team will have visuals, narratives, look-and-feel boards and layouts to
initially review the allocation of space, traffic flow, audi0visual components, interactive displays, lighting and special
effects. An overall graphic identity for the exhibit at this stage of design.
Typical Deliverables for Schematic Phase inperson meetings (and distribution of meeting notes)
Content: description of project goals and messages
Content: visitor experience narrative
Content: outline 0f major components
Design: Rough plan view w/content
Design: Diagrams 0f content relationships
Design: Traffic-flow diagrams
Design: Sketches 0f key points in exhibition
Design: Color perspective sketches (for fundraising and exhibit naming opportunities)
Graphic Design: Collage of look & feel for exhibits and graphics
Schedule: Fabrication and Installation schedule Schematic Floor Plan
FD A/V Plan
Design Process Construction Documents (CD Also called Contract Documents)
By the conclusion of the Final Design phase, a complete package that illustrates the full exhibit designhow it will
be built, where every component is located and how each works within the larger space. This package includes
exhibition identification, exhibition descriptions, a database of exhibit components, measured CAD plans with
content, floor plans, elevations, artifact lists, measured graphic design elements and samples, draft scripts with
details for audio visual components, interactive exhibits, final text, sound and lighting systems specifications,
production schedules and a fabrication cost estimate.
CD Detail
Sources:
Architecture and Exhibition Design: A Survey of Infrastructure by Charles Howarth Jr. and Maeryta
Medrano, ASTC, 1997 (Discovery Science Center, Santa Ana, CA, / Mark Walhimer was one of the case studies)
2010, 2009, 2008 ASTC Statistics Analysis Package
www.si.edu/opanda/reports/EXCost.pdf
http://www.aam-us.org/aboutmuseums/whatis.cfm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Museum
http://icom.museum/who-we-are/the-vision/museum-definition.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exhibition
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Design
http://www.louvre.fr/llv/musee/histoire_louvre.jsp?bmLocale=en
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capitoline_Museums
