How do I design my exhibition?

Exhibition is 3D storytelling. It has both a narrative structure and a physical layout. Here are a few ideas on how to structure your exhibition design so that it really grabs and then holds the visitors’ attention.

How do I layout the exhibition?

Exhibitions as a medium of communication, have advantages and disadvantages over other forms of edutainment. Unlike a movie or a book the viewer is not sitting in a seat watching, or reading: They are physically moving into and through the story. This makes it harder to control the narrative, or to explain detailed complex written ideas, but opens up the use of spatial design, multi-sensory media, interactive design, and social interaction. All of these elements can be used to enhance the communication of your content, but if ill- considered they can work against it.

Consider the visitor’s experience of walking through your exhibition. This is spatial design. Do you want to constrain the audience to walking a tightly controlled narrative path, like sheep through a drafting race, or allow a random voyage of discovery, like a kid’s treasure hunt? How does a dark confined space feel compared to a light open airy space? What will they see when they turn the corner: a surprise, something to play with, a visual delight, a fascinating rare artifact? Like any story, there is a logical hierarchy to laying out the material: It has a beginning, middle and end; or an opening scene, a few acts, and a denouement. What emotions do you want the visitor to feel as they move through your story?

What media do I use?

The answer to this question is closely linked to the emotions you want to evoke in the audience as they move through your story. Words and pictures, long considered the core of an exhibition, can evoke emotions, but there is so much more to play with: sound, music, lighting effects, moving images, the ability to touch and play with textures, objects and interactives. Educators are aware that VAK, or visual, audio, kinesthetic methods reach a wider range of learners, but few consider the social conditions of learning. Nina Simon’s book “The Participatory Museum” and Te Wananga o Aotearoa’s “Ako Wananga” both consider the effectiveness of social interaction. Think about how your visitors are going to engage with your exhibition: alone, in a small group or in a large group. Is the whole group going to be actively engaged with each other and the exhibition? Or are individuals going to be standing with hands in pockets reading text? How does that compete with playing on your cell phone? Is it worth incorporating a digital or analogue game? Exhibitions have an ability to facilitate social interaction that other media don’t, so why not work with that advantage?

What about practical requirements?

Of course there are also practical requirements such as building structure, fire regulations, security controls, humidity control and disabled access to consider. Fire regulations can limit the number of visitors allowed in a space, and also require easy access and visibility of fire doors and signage. Security usually requires that there is only one entry/exit to a space that is watched by a staff member. Disabled access requires 1.2m circulation width and no more than a 1/12 incline, and awareness of viewing heights from a wheelchair. Humidity control requires the containment and control of air within a space. Building structure must be considered for heavy loads, such as shelves of books, or the hanging of elephant skeletons. (Yes, we had to do this once).