I’ve had the good fortune to work on a number of fantastic exhibit projects for some marvelous museums. From permanent installations such as The History Lab learning center and the TimeScape Room to special exhibitions that featured everything from mummies to masterpieces, the work has been mind building, fun, and the ultimate—meaningful for visitors. Following is a gallery of projects I’ve worked on as content developer, curator, and project manager.
“Treasures from the Shenandoah” at the Harbor History Museum, 2020
Curator, writer, graphic design.
This exhibit featured the weird, wonderful, and unexpected treasures discovered in the nooks and crannies of the 65-foot wooden fishing boat Shenandoah being restored at the Harbor History Museum. From children’s toys to an untouched pack of cigarettes from 1973, the objects were unique and varied. We presented each of them, including paper wasp nest and wood-destroying fungus roots, as miniature works of art to be looked at closely and considered broadly.
Quotes from key players in the story of the Shenandoah, such as cannery tycoon Nick Bez and boat skipper Tony Janovich, were included to give a personal eye view of commercial fishing during the boat’s 73 career on the water.
“Legacy: The Art of Heritage – the Glenn Sutt Native Basket Collection” at the Harbor History Museum, 2019
Curator, writer, graphic design.
This special exhibition was developed to showcase the extraordinary collection of 100 baskets received from the estate of the collector Glenn Sutt. Featuring pieces originating from Alaska to Minnesota, the exhibit was on view at the Harbor History Museum in the summer of 2019.
“Shaping a New World,” renovation of the Great Hall Permanent Installation at the Washington State History Museum, 2015
Content developer, writer, and section curator.
This project included both an interactive map that shows how the various forces (volcanics, ice, wind, and floods) shaped Washington, but also a “Car Trip of Catastrophes” that explains through images of remaining evidence what happened geologically to make Washington the unique place it is.
“Ernest Oglby Punkweiler and the Fabulous-Miraculous Time Intrusionator,” Special Exhibition, Washington State History Museum, 2014
Curator, Writer, Audio Artist, and Project Manager.
Listen to the story of Ernest Oglby Punkweiler…
The TimeScape Room at the J. Paul Getty Museum Villa, 2009
Project manager and content developer.
The TimeScape Room was a small space that packed a big punch. Designed to explain the nuances of ancient Greek, Roman, and Etruscan cultures in relation to one another and their art, the TimeScape Room was a complex design and installation challenge. The primary interpretive goal was to engage visitors in the investigation of real objects in order to help them understand stylistic and aesthetic developments across time, place, and culture.
The History Lab Learning Center, Washington State History Museum, 2001
Project manager, curator, text writer.
Designed to make history fun and put visitors in the role of history detectives, the History Lab focuses on seven historical thinking concepts (time, place, exploration, viewpoint, biography, causation, and precedent) and seven tools of historical investigation (artifacts, images, ephemera, people, maps, books & periodicals, and electronic media). The Time Gallery below demonstrates change through time, as well as “kinds” of time (biological, geologic, and mechanical).
Exhibit Writing Samples from “Animals & Acrobats: Washington’s Greatest Circus Poster Collection”
collectionPanelIntroPanel21x54-vers1
caseObjectLabelcollectionPanelIntroPanel21x54-vers1
“Two Views, Two Voices: The Photography of Edward and Asahel Curtis” (winner of the John McClelland Award, Washington State Historical Society)
Article about the lives and work of brothers Edward and Ashael Curtis, Columbia Magazine
Full text of article: views-voices
The Stephisphere 