Objects as Scene

Most commonly in museums, objects get chosen to go on display because they are categorically similar to each other. But that’s not the only option. As we discovered, you can also choose so that objects make juxtapositions, or tell an interrelated story.

(Article #4 of a four-part series. Good design doesn’t begin with object layout — it starts with object selection.)

So here’s one last less-common idea: what about choosing them to create an environment?

Objects as Scene is an object-selection strategy in which artifacts are chosen because they will evoke a recognizable environment when arranged correctly. The organizing principle isn't similarity or narrative. It's setting.

Imagine a Victorian writing desk with spectacles, an inkwell, scattered letters with one on the floor, a fountain pen, and a well-worn chair. None of these objects is especially meaningful alone.

Together, however, they are more than a display. They are a room. Visitors automatically imagine a person who worked there, the routines they followed, and the world they inhabited.

When familiar objects appear in believable relationships, visitors imagine the rest. They no longer see the objects as isolated. They perceive an environment assembled from authentic evidence.

Here's the thing:

Whichever object selection method you pick — categorically similar objects, Juxtaposing Objects, Interrelating Objects, or Objects as Scene — good design doesn’t begin with visual object layout.

It starts with thoughtful object selection.

Warmly,
Jonathan

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MtM Word(s) of the Day:

Object selection, or artifact selection. The process of choosing which artifacts will be displayed together to communicate an idea, story, comparison, or scene. Usually but not always led by a curator or content developer. It is a distinct interpretive step that should precede object layout.

Object layout, or artifact layout, or case layout. The process of visually arranging selected artifacts within a display to tell a story, while preserving the objects. Typically, but not always, done by a designer following object selection. Success depends as much on the chosen relationships between objects as on the arrangement itself.