Museum of Science & Industry gears up for new exhibits

CSSI recently helped Chicago’s Museum of Science and Industry test a prototype for their new permanent “Sunlight Exhibit” that is scheduled to open in 2010. The experiment, which was set up in CSSI’s soft goods area where light and dust could be controlled, was conducted to determine angles and relationships between components needed to assist in the exhibit’s final design.

Using an open door into the shop, sunlight was funneled through three mirrors aimed at a prism. The resulting rainbow was projected onto a long, fabric-covered surface. This surface pivoted on the bottom and was raised on the other end using Chicago Scenic’s automation systems to facilitate the precise adjustments required to control the experiment. After various adjustments, the perfect combination was determined.
CSSI is currently working on a permanent, vertical version of the Sunlight Exhibit display (designed by Evidence Design) for the museum, scheduled to be installed in the upcoming months. CSSI’s Jean Burch worked closely with MSI’s Senior Project Manager Chris Wilson.

Missouri Botanical Garden dresses up for orchid show

The Missouri Botanical Garden is the oldest continuously operating botanical garden in the nation and is celebrating its sesquicentennial anniversary (150 years) this year. In honor of this milestone, its 2009 Orchid Show incorporated a Victorian theme.

The indoor show features a large, three-tiered fountain at the center, giving the look and feel of an old-fashioned courtyard. Just beyond the courtyard area hangs the historic image of the Tower Grove House, the country estate of the Missouri Botanical Garden’s founder, Henry Shaw.

Chicago Scenic produced the three large banners that make up this image and designed and engineered the hardware from which they hang. Because the banners were so large (35-feet-wide by 20-feet-tall combined), CSSI retouched and optimized the image to make it as sharp as possible.

CSSI looks forward to providing more decor for the exhibit hall as the garden’s needs continue to grow.

 

Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum exhibit is for the birds

Nearly 100 species of Illinois birds recently migrated from the Chicago Academy of Sciences’ Collections facility to their new permanent home in the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum for the exhibit, “Birds of Chicago.”

Chicago Scenic provided the large museum-quality case that was designed to virtually disappear from sight so visitors can focus on the materials inside. To accomplish this, the front face is comprised of four large pieces of glass, the top is made of four smaller pieces, and the sides are made of glass framed in square tube steel.

The bird case, located in the Wilderness Walk gallery, houses a variety of preserved specimens. The Wilderness Walk gallery holds three meticulously recreated environments: a prairie, savanna, and dune, complete with true-to-life lighting and sounds, along with live and preserved animals.

McCormick Freedom Museum updates exhibits and displays Obama’s election night lectern

The McCormick Freedom Museum, which was housed in Chicago’s Tribune Building until March 1, recently built out a new exhibit called “Marketplace of Ideas.” The 12-by-12-foot-square space, designed by Gallagher & Associates, was dedicated to exploring the benefits and difficulties of the free exchange of information in an ever-changing world. Chicago Scenic created the two angled cases at the exhibit’s entrance, housing for the large TV monitor, and the graphics covering the walls.

CSSI loaned the lectern it had built for Barack Obama’s election night speech in Chicago’s Grant Park and accompanying flags to the museum, allowing visitors to see and touch a part of history. Although the museum left its permanent home on March 1, it will continue to spread its messages to students and the public at large through the McCormick Foundation Mobile Museum. This new arrangement will allow for temporary, traveling exhibits and other outreach programs.

Shedd Aquarium sheds light on conservation

Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium doesn’t just talk the talk about protecting the environment, it walks the walk too! The Aquarium brought its message of conserving water to the public with a unique exhibit at the 2009 Chicago Flower & Garden Show.

Entitled “The WaterShedd,” the exhibit illustrated effective and pleasing ways to create a xeriscape garden—an environment that requires minimal or no irrigation—using native and non-native plant species. Chicago Scenic worked from a sketch that grew out of Shedd Horticultural Manager Christine Nye’s original master plan and made the exhibit a reality.

The garden and its accompanying porch created an excellent community outreach opportunity, with WaterShedd staffers speaking to over 7,500 attendees over the course of the show. The reverberating sound of “rain” hitting the garden porch’s corrugated metal roof and then flowing down a gutter system was a particularly dramatic demonstration of how the home gardener can create a rain water collection system which can virtually eliminate the need for extra irrigation.

Shedd Senior Exhibit Developer Kris Nesbitt said, “We were extremely happy with Chicago Scenic’s ability to jump into this project and make it a success.”