Virtual Exhibition Tour Analysis
This blog is about two museum virtual tours that I viewed: the Natural History Museum and the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum. I viewed both of these museums virtually through their websites. I wanted to analyze their exhibits and see how they chose to portray their information and teach viewers.
Natural History Museum
This exhibit I looked at shows off the natural world from sea creatures to insects to plant life.
Some of my initial observations from the virtual tour:
- The exhibits are organized well in small sections.
- Information about the exhibits lines the walls.
- Small clusters of imagery on the wall coupled with text.
- This is a mostly visual experience.
Some things I wish the exhibit had:
- More information on each subject.
- Larger sections for each subject.
- Themed rooms that give the viewer more information.
- More interactive elements.
The exhibit was designed in a way that made each section clear and easy to follow.
Typography
Some things that I noticed about the typography in this exhibit:
- The font in this exhibit is very clear and legible.
- They used a simple sans serif typeface that doesn’t draw a lot of attention to itself.
- They made a clear visual hierarchy by making the headings bigger than the body of the text.
I think that the decisions that went into deciding the typography of the exhibits were to make them legible and draw as little attention to themselves as possible. They stuck with the same typographic theme for each exhibit, using only one sans serif typeface and utilizing size for hierarchy.
Physical Space
My initial thoughts about the exhibit space:
- The overall vibe of the exhibit is very formal.
- It feels like a traditional museum.
- To me, it seems like a good place for families with a bit older children to visit.
I think that their goal for this space was to create an informative experience for people of all ages.
Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum
This exhibit shows off the feats of technology, specifically in air travel. It also shows the progression of this technology throughout history.
Some of my observations from the virtual tour:
- Information can be found on walls, plaques, or on interactive screens.
- There are a lot of elements that add to the theme, like images, typography, and models.
I wish the experience had:
- A clear timeline of inventions.
- I wish that the virtual tour was easier to navigate; I kept getting lost as it jumped me over to an adjacent room when I tried to move forward.
- I wish that the virtual tour gave me the ability to interact with the interactive parts of the exhibit. I can see the screens with games, but I can’t interact with them to get the full experience of the exhibit.
- The option to watch the videos at the exhibits.
The theme of this exhibit is designed very well. It draws the viewers in and gives them context for the information.
Typography
Some things that I noticed about the typography in this exhibit:
- The font in this exhibit seems to match the theme.
- Most of the fonts are legible, but some of them can be difficult to read, like the script fonts.
- The paragraph text is plain, but the headings use a more stylized font.
- The plaques of information are organized well with a hierarchy that uses font size and style.
I think that they decided to use fonts that reflected the theme of the exhibits to immerse the viewer into the era.
Physical Space
My initial thoughts about the exhibit space:
- The vibe is very open and friendly. There are many models and interactive elements that give viewers more information than words could.
- It feels energetic to me. There are large plane models, interactive screens, colorful themes that make me want to explore.
- I think this museum was designed for children.
I think that they are trying to give viewers a sense of awe and wonder. Seeing a picture of a plane is not as impressive as seeing the massive thing hanging over you.
Conclusion
I chose to do a virtual tour of these museums because I was interested in their topics. I enjoy learning about nature and space, so these exhibits caught my attention. While looking at these exhibits, I actually learned quite a bit. One fun fact is that Amelia Earhart set more than ten records in aviation between 1922 and 1935!
Overall, I enjoyed these exhibits, especially the air and space exhibit. They drew me in with their plane models and historic themes. I wish that I could have gone in person.
This experience helped me understand what draws people in and gives them a desire to learn.
