Exhibitions

How a Rapid-Response Pop-Up Inspired New Notions of Audience and Community

By Jeni O’Malley & Maggie Schmidt

The events of 2020 and 2021 forced museums to innovate in ways and at a speed that would have been unthinkable prior. Our hope is that 2022 brings about a time of reflection, where we take the time to process what we created under …
Looking Back to Move Forward: Examining Institutional Racism in Reprising “Afro-American Images 1971”

By Margaret Winslow

In February 1971, a newly formed Delaware organization, Aesthetic Dynamics Inc., presented its first major undertaking: an exhibition of over 130 works of art—drawings, prints, photographs, paintings, and sculpture—by sixty-six African …
The Mind Behind the Myth: Navigating visitor reactions at Kew Palace

By Elizabeth Merritt

During the pandemic, museums supported the mental health of their communities in creative and generous ways. Some created outdoor art installations to boost the spirits of people in nursing homes and hospitals. Others provided online art …
Designing for Engagement: Five Steps for Co-Creating Exhibits and Programs with Your Communities

By Bryan Markovitz and Isabel Singer

Museums are changing how they interact with the communities they serve, adopting practices that are more inclusive and engaging for all. One of the practices they are increasingly turning to is co-creation: forming an equal partnership …
Microclimates: A Greener Future for Collection Care

By Joyce Lee & Kelly Krish

There are many options available for museums to address climate action and become more sustainable, but recent work at two institutions has highlighted the value in one particular method: creating “microclimates” which confine …
The Peabody Essex Museum’s Climate + Environment Initiative Seeks to Create a Different Climate Future

By Jane Winchell

As the director of an interactive art and nature space, I’ve included climate change as a topic in many shows and programs over the years. But until recently, I had convinced myself that focusing an entire exhibition on climate change …
PIVOT: When the Exhibit Title Sets the Tone

By Elizabeth Quinn MacMillan & Amy Cao

The Center of Southwest Studies at Fort Lewis College had just installed its latest exhibit, PIVOT: Skateboard Deck Art, when the pandemic hit in March 2020. Over the next year, the exhibit’s title took on new meaning, as “pivoting” became …
Building Emotional Intelligence Through Play

By Anne Fullenkamp

An exhibition at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh uses the movie Inside Out to teach children about thei…
Empathy Check (and why it’s not a cliché)

By Victoria Edwards

An exhibition on African American women’s hair became a space for the African diasporic perspective to be seen, heard, valued, and better …
The Secrets of Emotion

By Pablo P. L. Tinio

Psychological science offers myriad opportunities for measuring emotional responses to the museum …