How do you choose exhibits for Discovery Place?

This question comes from one of the boxes on the “Renovation Kiosks” in the Museum and is one that is asked frequently.

Selecting which exhibitions to showcase at Discovery Place is a complex process that involves many departments on the Museum staff. To start, our Exhibits team maintains relationships with exhibition developers and other science centers around the world to keep abreast of what exhibitions are available and what is in development. In addition, they attend industry trade shows and conferences to see and learn what is out there.

The selection of a particular exhibition for Discovery Place involves our Learning Experiences, Marketing and Advancement teams along with the Exhibits group. Learning Experiences evaluates the educational value of the exhibition including the way it aligns with school curriculum and our ability to develop additional programming to enhance the experience. Marketing looks at the potential appeal to Discovery Place visitors using information from past exhibitions, surveys, visitor comment books and interviews. Advancement evaluates our ability to raise the necessary contributed funds to secure and maintain the exhibition as well as to create additional educational programs.

In addition, we evaluate the exhibition’s space and physical requirements and whether it is available during a time period that makes sense for our exhibition schedule and visitors. Taking all of these inputs into consideration, we make a final determination about bringing an exhibition to Discovery Place.

Stop at one of the “Renovation Kiosks” on your next visit to Discovery Place to submit a question. We’ll post answers to the most frequently asked questions here on the blog.