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San Diego Natural History Museum
"Installing an exhibition involves
many highly sequential tasks. As an
example, in the Pliocene section, the
whale skull had to be installed after the
mural behind it was installed, but before
the glass was installed. All of these
sequential events involved different
contractors, vendors, and staff that all
needed to be coordinated and supplied
with constantly changing information
for a successful installation."
Muralist William Stout reflected on the nature of murals in exhibitions: "Murals are one of scientists' conduits to the public. Artists can transform difficult scientific concepts into easy-tograsp visuals for the public. This in turn creates public education, understanding and support for science." Much of the art is hands-on: "There are a lot of touchable objects in Fossil Mysteries," said Michael Field, exhibit designer. "If a picture is worth a thousand words, a touchable object is worth 10,000." The last year of installation was not without drama: Jim Stone recalled that one of the most nerve-wracking episodes involved fossils, including the horse and Protoreodon, that were badly damaged being shipped back to the Museum. "It was very disheartening. They just weren't packed right. The armatures, which hold the fossils, were okay, but the fossils were in what seemed like a million pieces in the bottom of the box. And we only had two days until the opening. "So we called on Maggie Hart and Don Jeffrey, fossil preparators, to help. Two days later the fossils were on display as if nothing happened! It was almost miraculous." Nearby, Carcharodon megalodon- a gigantic extinct "megatooth" shark- swims through the air over the atrium. At 34' long, it is the actual size of a subadult female-a third smaller than an adult male megalodon. Why did the Museum decide to exhibit a subadult, rather than a more impressive adult? "We had a complete set of teeth for a subadult megalodon-this is extremely rare. Usually shark teeth are found scattered about because they shed so frequently. In addition, we knew that the shark could only be so wide-it had to fit through the Museum's doors. We built a scale model to test our dimensions," explained Michael Field, as he demonstrated this process with his hands. "Originally the plan was to bring the entire body of the shark into the atrium to hang it. In the end we basically cut it into 'steaks' and brought it in on the freight elevator and reassembled it as it was hung." As the project accelerated, so did community support. This is exceptionally evident in Fossil Mysteries dollars and column inches. The $8 million exhibition was completely funded, and it has been the best publicized event in Museum history. A team of a dozen staff from four departments created the Museum's application for the California Cultural Heritage Endowment (CCHE)-funds for cultural institutions made available by Proposition 40. CCHE funded a significant portion of Fossil Mysteries. (For complete funding information, see pages 18-19). Elizabeth Castillo, director of foundation relations, states, "Working on the CCHE grant application was a labor of love. Our team spent over 200 hours putting together the highest quality application possible. It was tremendously rewarding to learn that out of the 276 funding applications submitted to CCHE, Fossil Mysteries was selected as one of only 30 grant recipients in the first round, receiving one of the largest awards ($2.88 million). It was also marvelous to see the project get such excellent statewide visibility through this grant award." Deputy Director, Development, Elizabeth Schiff reported "donors were enthusiastic about the exhibition's visual richness and eager to see their funding used to share the history of our region with Museum visitors now and for years to come." When asked about the publicity for the exhibition, Delle Willett, director of marketing and public relations, smiles and says, "We have had a phenomenal response from the media. For example, we hosted a behind-the-scenes tour Carcharodon megalodon, extinct "megatooth" shark for science writers, and nearly every writer who came did a feature story on Fossil Mysteries. We garnered some national coverage as well, and the press clippings are still coming in!" The exhibition's concepts are explored in more depth on the Museum's website, advancing science education both for the classroom (curriculum ties to California Content Standards) and the visitor who simply wants to learn more. Public programs-including lectures, field expeditions, teacher guides and workshops-are planned. (See more about education endeavors on page 12.) "This exhibition will change science education in San Diego forever," states Jim Stone. Also in line with the Museum's binational mission and collections, Fossil Mysteries is completely bilingual. This collaboration between artists, educators and scientists has yielded an extraordinary result. Nancy Owens Renner, wearing her audience-research hat, described the public response to the exhibition so far. "There are all the signs of a well-used exhibition. The stay-time has increased dramatically; the quality of engagement is high. The depth of physical and social interaction between family members is very good. 
"The child and family elements are a big hit. We knew they would be because we tested prototypes of major components. We put one sample out on the floor where visitors could turn a crank to see how subduction of the seafloor happens. But it didn't click; people didn't get it. So we decided to use another method to demonstrate the phenomenon," she continued. Is the exhibition finished? Jim Stone answered, "Actually it's not finished; it just entered another phase of its life." The Museum will continue to monitor exhibition participation in order to update and improve the Fossil Mysteries experience. Tim Murray added, "In fact, there are a couple of specimens we're still waiting for. One fan following the development of the exhibition via our website sent us an e-mail saying they loved it, but where is the walrus?" And Tom Demere expects exciting new fossil finds to work their way into the exhibition as discoveries continue to be made. 
Did the Museum take a break after Fossil Mysteries opened? Actually, the Museum is already working on their next big project. In June 2007, Dead Sea Scrolls opens. Habitat Journey (working title) will be the next major permanent exhibition the group works on. But before that, the same creative team that brought you Fossil Mysteries will most likely be completing exhibits on the third floor mezzanine that will highlight the research that is being done both in the field and in the thirdfloor science labs: a metaphorical "window" into the research carried out by the Museum's Biodiversity Research Center of the Californias. |
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