These are the core areas in my group-skill sets in which I set out to make significant improvements or progress by the time of my final evaluation. The completed entries are in bold:
Grant Writing
- Select a grant and write an application.
- Using our collective knowledge of the available grant options, the grant team should utilize its various readings on how to draft an application and actually write one up. We must take care to tailor our language and subject matter to the grant foundation’s core values and demonstrate how our project meets their criteria.
- Wrote application for Pharos Fund
- Learn the specific details of the application submission process.
- I will consult Catherine Kane to review our application and communicate with the relevant parties in the history department before submitting it. Ms. Kane has agreed to help us bypass the dense bureaucratic obstacles that come with submitting grants to foundations. I would like to learn what exactly she does so I can be more prepared should I ever submit more grants. I will also need to identify the history department’s accounting technician, as he/she will be the one receiving any incoming funds. Even though we will probably submit a fake application, I want to document every stage of the process.
- Discussed the entire process with Catherine Kane and learned about the different application procedures utilized at CSU. This is generally a multilayered approach, with a proposal often going through several different parties before it is sent to the grant foundation.
Collection Management
- Learn how to prepare an object submission form template specifically tailored for PastPerfect.
- PastPerfect object entries have a lot of areas for information, but the key ones appear to be Object ID, Object Name, Accession Number, Date, Catalogued By, Status, Status Date, and Description. I want our history harvest paperwork to mimic PastPerfect’s input setup as closely as possible so that we are not left with any unknown data when the time comes for us to collect objects. This will need to be accomplished before the beginning of March, when most of our final history harvests will occur.
- Revised previous history harvest forms.
- Create a PastPerfect entry
- Enter one of the items in the final exhibit collection into PastPerfect, using all the appropriate metadata to organize it. Include pictures, appraisals, background information, and location data.
- Made an entry for rosary beads
Mount and Display
- Develop designs and/or schematics for visitor interactive displays.
- The visitor and audiences team has assembled a list of potential visitor interactives. Nearly all of them will require a custom fabrication. Once the team decides what interactives it wants, I need to gauge the available gallery space and determine the proper dimensions for each unit. The ensuing design documents can be done through SketchUp, or simply drawn by hand. I will research SketchUp’s capabilities for blueprint designing.
- Drew several preliminary sketches by hand, and eventually created one in Sketchup.
- Learn which types of display cases will function best for the objects we receive and assemble a catalogue of selected display cases.
- This ultimately hinges on the results of March’s history harvests, but we must decide on which cases/shelves/frames would be most suitable for our exhibit space. We should ideally maintain a consistent and accessible aesthetic with our displays. The display cases and their associated materials should be appropriate for the objects, yet not distract from them. I will research what kinds of display materials will accentuate artifacts for visitors while not damaging the artifacts themselves.
- Discovered which cases would accommodate our objects most efficiently.
Exhibit Layout
- Have basic narrative layout of the exhibit.
- We have a rough sketch of the exhibit space, but no actual plan of how everything will be arranged. This will depend in part on what objects we receive, but I want to get a better idea of how to fit a linear narrative into a nonlinear exhibit space.
- Developed a working narrative structure.
- Learn how to make accurate and moveable 3D models for SketchUp exhibit space.
- I know how to build a floor space in SketchUp, but one of the advantages of the program is that it allows a skilled user to create models that can be digitally manipulated and moved throughout the virtual space. I want to hone my abilities to make highly accurate shelf, picture frame, and glass display case models in SketchUp in a manner that is both efficient and time-saving. SketchUp’s website is extremely helpful for these kinds of tutorials.
- Developed realistic models
- Learn about different ways to manipulate lighting to accentuate the exhibit.
- Custom lighting will be limited in our space but it can dramatically improve the overall experience if utilized correctly. It could also potentially delineate our exhibit from the others at Global Village and help maintain consistency between the hallway and the back room. I will research different strategies for employing light in confined spaces.
- Read about lighting inside of cases and in the wider museum space. Unfortunately, Global Village did not offer much versatility in this area.
Graphic Design
- Finish flyers for all three remaining history harvests.
- I want to tweak the preexisting flyer design for future harvests. I will alter the coloration of the image to reflect the specific target demographics for each event and also to differentiate the harvests from each other.
- Finished all the flyers, though we did not have three harvests
- Finalize logo.
- My attempts to make a suitable, simple logo graphic for the exhibit have not yielded satisfactory results. This is partially because the aesthetics of my designs have been very rough, but also because the imagery itself has not adequately captured the essence of our project. However, now that we have an agreed definition of the project’s subject matter, I can focus my research more tightly than before. Elizabeth Bogle’s Museum Exhibition book contains some basic guidelines for museum graphic design, so I will try to incorporate some of her recommendations in this process.
- Created stamp logo
- Master the fundamentals of Adobe Illustrator/Learn how to construct a layered image in Illustrator for logo and exhibition flyers.
- Although I know rudimentary drawing techniques in Adobe Illustrator, I am not well-versed in how to create complex, multi-layer graphic designs with it. Though I find the process quite easy in Photoshop, Illustrator is ultimately more versatile. Adobe itself has several tutorial videos on their website, but I find that YouTube contains a far more diverse array of graphic designers and artists with very detailed instructional content.
- Did not have enough time to master.
Visitor and Audiences
- Learn strategies for engaging multicultural audiences in a manner that promotes togetherness while reducing exclusion.
- I will continue to research methodologies employed by museums that are specifically engaged in using their institutions to bridge cultural gaps. One of the difficult challenges in this task will be determining how to successfully forge connections with audiences that I do not personally have much background with. I do not want to come across as pandering or disingenuous.
- Select specific visitor activities
- The team has brainstormed possible interactive activities. I want to learn which of these will realize our exhibit mission goals most effectively. I have seen or read about similar examples of all of our ideas and will delve into more detailed research regarding general visitor responses to them.
- Selected weigh-a-beet game and repeat photography board.
- Implement visitor interactives into the exhibit
- Complement the objects, photos, and histories on display with activities that do not distract from them. A successful interactive should instead enhance the visitor experience and foster a more personalized interest in the subject matter.
- Successfully integrated. The beet game accentuates the back room area, which is entirely sugar beet-themed. The repeat photo board heavily compliments the walking tour.
- Know how to design a visitor survey / evaluation
