This semester, there is a focus on informal learning in the
third year studio. The first project was to create a new vision for the exhibit
located in the lobby of the School of the Earth and Environmental Sciences at
Washington State University. The existing
exhibit was installed roughly 20 years ago and it desire of the building inhabitants to update the graphics and improve the spatial arrangement.
The space would benefit from a new design and graphic unity. In the first phase
of the design the existing display cases stayed in their place and movable options such as benches and smaller cases were rearranged to create a circulation path that engaged
with the information in the display cases. The goal of the display cases are to tell a
story of Geology and the environment. The sequence moves through the big bang,
rock cycle, environmental hazards and narrows down to the specific geology
relating to the Palouse. The graphics of the display cases introduce color and excitement to attract visitors and encourage
learning.
This project was different than those in the past because it
was done in a group of 9! The large group was a new experience and took a little bit of time to get used to . Once leaders were established and tasks were assigned the project quickly
progressed! The process began with the graphic design of the display cases. Individually,
each member designed the basics of what the case should include depending on
the topic and then one member of the group creates a unified graphic layout so
there was a consistent layout and transitions from one display to the next. In
the design process, behavior observations and light mapping were a large
component. Once the data was collected decisions based on the new floor plan
could begin! There is a large window that faces north which was loaded with
many different plants and trees and the team decided that to move the plants to
different windows or remove some would be the best way to attract people to the
space. By removing some of the plants and relocating the chairs in front of the
window this would be a more effective use of the day lit space and also bring
people into the area of the exhibit.
The main part of the project I contributed to was the
program. The program consisted of an introduction, site map, research, case
studies, adjacency matrix, bubble diagrams, observations, and other data that
was picked up along the way.
Once phase one was presented to the staff of the School of
the Earth and Environmental Sciences the group began creating interactive
displays and activities to relate to the display cases. Many study models were created
during this phase. To relate to the Rock Cycle case, I created an interactive
display that related to the “Who am I?” section of the poster. In this section,
the observer reads a description of the specific rock and then proceeds to
guess what type of rock it is. In the interactive display, one can flip up a placard
and reveal the correct answer as well as an image of the rock itself!
