Interpretive Exhibit Planning and Design

[wmaple@aol.com]

There seems to be few forums, groups or associations for interpretive exhibit planners and designers. Is it simply that this is a rare profession that keeps it a low profile endeavor?

[goolrick]

Originally Posted by wmaple@aol.com

There seems to be few forums, groups or associations for interpretive exhibit planners and designers. Is it simply that this is a rare profession that keeps it a low profile endeavor?

Hi William. I think it's because if there's any significant budget attached, the exhibit planning & design process is typically a private-sector enterprise and very competitive. I'm self-employed and I usually sub under a design or design/build firm to do planning and writing -- so I'm a vital part of the team, and I'm well-qualified (M.A. in history, Certified Interpretive Planner). But I often find that in "pure" museum groups, vendors (i.e., you and me) are sometimes considered an alien or adversarial species. At the same time, I'm completely out of it re the exhibit designers/producers association (EDPA), because they are mostly trade show designers, and interpretive museums and visitor centers are totally different. And here's a small world note: I'm on an NPS IDIQ for interpretive planning and I'm currently working on a Long-Range Interpretive Plan for NPS down at Andersonville. The POW museum is still as powerful as ever.