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1867 Yonge Street
Suite 1100
Toronto, ON
M4S 1Y5
+1 416.480.2020

United States

530 Seventh Avenue
M2 - Unit 20
New York, NY
10018
+1 212.929.6060

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Canada

1867 Yonge Street
Suite 1100
Toronto, ON
M4S 1Y5
+1 416.480.2020

United States

530 Seventh Avenue
M2 - Unit 20
New York, NY
10018
+1 212.929.6060

Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark

Smithsonian Institution: Hall of Human Origins

Overview

The gallery offers an emotional and intellectual journey through human evolution posing the question to visitors, “What does it mean to be human?”

Details

Client
Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History
Project
David H. Koch Hall of Human Origins
Size
15,000 sq. ft.
Scope
Exhibit Design, Graphic Design
Location
Washington D.C., USA
Year Completed
2010
Budget
$110,000,000

Impact

Yelp Reviews
4.5 Stars with 898 reviews
No. of Interactives
29
Visitors since opening
50+ million
Visitor volume
In 2018, named as one of the 10 most visited museums in the world

3 Awards Total

2011 ARIDO Award
2010 HOW Awards
Merit: Environmental Graphics
2010 OPIA Excellence in Print Awards
Best of Category

The
Goal

Since the Smithsonian and its team are leaders in the study of human origins, our goal was to conceive a powerful set of spaces and experiences to both immerse visitors in the science and to emotionally connect them to their ancient hominid ancestry.

There were multiple objectives for the Gallery. It needed to be flexible enough to accomodate new discoveries; it needed to take visitors into the depths of the scientific research; it needed to help visitors understand that modern humans are connected to ancient human species through the powerful forces of evolution; and it needed to give visitors access to the factual details as well as the powerful fundamental milestones in human evolution. Overall, the gallery needed to establish a new experiential precedent in the presentation of human origins to balance immersion, innovation, and scientific engagement.

Photo courtesy of NPR
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)

The
Design

Our design showcases a chronological journey of 7 million years of evolution that can be experienced from the past until today, or vice versa. The timeline is shown on a giant, sweeping, curved evolutionary wall spanning virtually the entire length of the gallery. The wall is punctuated with monumental sculptures that signify the major milestones in human evolution from bipedality through to symbolic thought. The long vista piercing into the main hall reveals a dramatic wall of stratigraphy showcasing ‘Human Characteristics’ as iconic sculptures, with abundant fossil highlights and interactives within an undulating wall of sedimentary layers. Adjacent to the wall, visitors encounter a series of media installations called ‘Snapshots in Time’.

Since human fossil evidence is fragmentary, minimal, and often difficult to understand, the gallery offers a rich palette of design techniques such as multimedia installations, immersive environments, powerful tactile sculptures /interactives, as well as direct encounters with many real fossils to chronicle a detailed history of human evolution.

Bold new interactive experiences allow visitors to engage in scientific exploration, uncovering how scientists have come to understand human evolution and the analytical methods by which they work. Interactive media was designed to foster social collaboration, even amongst strangers.

The design incorporates large-scale multimedia environments (such as a time tunnel that transports visitors through 7 million years of human evolution). Custom sculptured artworks bring visitors face-to-face with their distant hominid ancestors, personalizing the content of the gallery, as the encounters in the gallery help bring the fossils to life. Multimedia installations immerse visitors in the world of early hominids to better appreciate the complex stories that fossilized bone fragments alone cannot easily communicate.

Since the science of human origins, is a fast evolving area of research, display modules in the exhibit were deliberately designed in such a way that they could easily be updated by the museum as the science itself evolves.

Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark

The
Result

The gallery design of the David H. Koch Hall of Human Origins purposefully builds a meaningful connection to our ancient human ancestors with encounters that stimulate both the head, and heart. The resulting design features are dramatic yet elegant, effectively conveying the message of the exhibit in an inviting and thought-provoking space. The exhibition was considered such a success as a communication too, it was turned into a travelling exhibition and sent out to across the United States to teach the science of evolution in places where evolution was thought to be a contentious issue.

The media response to the gallery was deeply enthusiastic:
“The show humanizes evolution. It is in part a story of human triumph“.
Edward Rothstein, The New York Times

Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark

Other
Project Specific Work

As part of our contract, R&P did the media direction and procured and delivered the media for the project.

R&P helped the Smithsonian to develop their first iPhone app, “Meanderthal.” The app was based on the popular face morphing AV interactive within the gallery. In this interactive, visitors see themselves connected to their early ancestors in a fun and engaging way.

R&P provided additional graphic design services for marketing the new gallery opening. They designed the exterior building banners that featured some of the key specimens from the gallery.

These hung prominently from the main mall entrance to the museum. R&P also designed the invitation for the opening gala event. The concept of the invitation was ‘uncovering what makes us human’. As the recipient pulls open the card from its sleeve, they reveal the characteristics that make us human, one of which is the opposable thumb which the recipient had to use to open the card!

Photo courtesy of R&P
Photo courtesy of R&P
Photo courtesy of R&P
Photo courtesy of R&P

Read more
about this project
on the blog

SI: Hall of Human Origins Accessibility Case Study

August 1, 2019

Smithsonian Institution: Hall of Human Origins

Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark

Details

Client
Smithsonian Institution National Museum of Natural History
Project
David H. Koch Hall of Human Origins
Size
15,000 sq. ft.
Scope
Exhibit Design, Graphic Design
Location
Washington D.C., USA
Year Completed
2010
Budget
$110,000,000

Overview

The gallery offers an emotional and intellectual journey through human evolution posing the question to visitors, “What does it mean to be human?”

Impact

Yelp Reviews
4.5 Stars with 898 reviews
No. of Interactives
29
Visitors since opening
50+ million
Visitor volume
In 2018, named as one of the 10 most visited museums in the world

3 Awards Total

2011 ARIDO Award
2010 HOW Awards
Merit: Environmental Graphics
Photo courtesy of NPR
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)

The
Goal

Since the Smithsonian and its team are leaders in the study of human origins, our goal was to conceive a powerful set of spaces and experiences to both immerse visitors in the science and to emotionally connect them to their ancient hominid ancestry.

There were multiple objectives for the Gallery. It needed to be flexible enough to accomodate new discoveries; it needed to take visitors into the depths of the scientific research; it needed to help visitors understand that modern humans are connected to ancient human species through the powerful forces of evolution; and it needed to give visitors access to the factual details as well as the powerful fundamental milestones in human evolution. Overall, the gallery needed to establish a new experiential precedent in the presentation of human origins to balance immersion, innovation, and scientific engagement.

Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)

The
Design

Our design showcases a chronological journey of 7 million years of evolution that can be experienced from the past until today, or vice versa. The timeline is shown on a giant, sweeping, curved evolutionary wall spanning virtually the entire length of the gallery. The wall is punctuated with monumental sculptures that signify the major milestones in human evolution from bipedality through to symbolic thought. The long vista piercing into the main hall reveals a dramatic wall of stratigraphy showcasing ‘Human Characteristics’ as iconic sculptures, with abundant fossil highlights and interactives within an undulating wall of sedimentary layers. Adjacent to the wall, visitors encounter a series of media installations called ‘Snapshots in Time’.

Since human fossil evidence is fragmentary, minimal, and often difficult to understand, the gallery offers a rich palette of design techniques such as multimedia installations, immersive environments, powerful tactile sculptures /interactives, as well as direct encounters with many real fossils to chronicle a detailed history of human evolution.

Bold new interactive experiences allow visitors to engage in scientific exploration, uncovering how scientists have come to understand human evolution and the analytical methods by which they work. Interactive media was designed to foster social collaboration, even amongst strangers.

The design incorporates large-scale multimedia environments (such as a time tunnel that transports visitors through 7 million years of human evolution). Custom sculptured artworks bring visitors face-to-face with their distant hominid ancestors, personalizing the content of the gallery, as the encounters in the gallery help bring the fossils to life. Multimedia installations immerse visitors in the world of early hominids to better appreciate the complex stories that fossilized bone fragments alone cannot easily communicate.

Since the science of human origins, is a fast evolving area of research, display modules in the exhibit were deliberately designed in such a way that they could easily be updated by the museum as the science itself evolves.

Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark

The
Result

The gallery design of the David H. Koch Hall of Human Origins purposefully builds a meaningful connection to our ancient human ancestors with encounters that stimulate both the head, and heart. The resulting design features are dramatic yet elegant, effectively conveying the message of the exhibit in an inviting and thought-provoking space. The exhibition was considered such a success as a communication too, it was turned into a travelling exhibition and sent out to across the United States to teach the science of evolution in places where evolution was thought to be a contentious issue.

The media response to the gallery was deeply enthusiastic:
“The show humanizes evolution. It is in part a story of human triumph“.
Edward Rothstein, The New York Times

Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark

Other
Project Specific Work

As part of our contract, R&P did the media direction and procured and delivered the media for the project.

R&P helped the Smithsonian to develop their first iPhone app, “Meanderthal.” The app was based on the popular face morphing AV interactive within the gallery. In this interactive, visitors see themselves connected to their early ancestors in a fun and engaging way.

R&P provided additional graphic design services for marketing the new gallery opening. They designed the exterior building banners that featured some of the key specimens from the gallery.

These hung prominently from the main mall entrance to the museum. R&P also designed the invitation for the opening gala event. The concept of the invitation was ‘uncovering what makes us human’. As the recipient pulls open the card from its sleeve, they reveal the characteristics that make us human, one of which is the opposable thumb which the recipient had to use to open the card!

Photo courtesy of R&P
Photo courtesy of R&P
Photo courtesy of R&P
Photo courtesy of R&P

Read more
about this project
on the blog

SI: Hall of Human Origins Accessibility Case Study

August 1, 2019
Photo courtesy of NPR
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of JVD Photography (Jiri Von Drak)
Photo courtesy of © Smithsonian Institution, Chip Clark
Photo courtesy of R&P
Photo courtesy of R&P
Photo courtesy of R&P
Photo courtesy of R&P
Projects Smithsonian Institution: Hall of Human Origins