PROJECT 3 IDENTITY SYSTEM : The Field Museum
By Nini Lin
THE COMPANY : The Field Museum 1. History
The Field Museum and its collections originated from the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition and the artifacts displayed at the fair. In order to house the exhibits and collections assembled for the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair for future generations, Edward Ayer convinced the merchant Marshall Field to fund the establishment of a museum. Originally titled the Columbian Museum of Chicago in honor of its origins, the Field Museum was incorporated by the State of Illinois on September 16, 1893, for the purpose of the “accumulation and dissemination of knowledge, and the preservation and exhibition of artifacts illustrating art, archaeology, science and history.” The Columbian Museum of Chicago occupied the only building remaining from the World’s Columbian Exposition, the Palace of Fine Arts, which now houses the Museum of Science and Industry. In 1905, the Museum’s name was changed to Field Museum of Natural History to honor the Museum’s first major benefactor,Marshall Field, and to better reflect its focus on the natural sciences. During the period from 1943 to 1966, the museum was known as the Chicago Natural History Museum. In 1921 the Museum moved from its original location in Jackson Park to its present site on Chicago Park District property near downtown. By the late 1930s the Field Museum of Natural History emerged as one of the three premier museums in the United States, the other two being the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH, New York) and the National Museum of Natural History (Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC). The Field Museum maintains its high reputation through continuous growth, expanding the scope of collections, and extensive scientific research output, in addition to the institution’s award-winning exhibitions, associated outreach publications, and programs. Today, the Field Museum is part of Chicago’s lakefront Museum Campus that includes the John G. Shedd Aquarium and the Adler Planetarium. The museum was allegedly defrauded of $900,000 by an employee over a seven-year period to 2014.
2. Mission Statement
The Field Museum inspires curiosity about life on Earth while exploring how the world came to be and how we can make it a better place. We invite visitors, students, educators and scientists from around the world on a journey of scientific discovery. Our exhibitions tell the story of life on Earth Our collections solve scientific mysteries Our research opens new vistas Our science translates into action for a healthy planet As educators, we inspire wonder and understanding.
3. Current Identity LOGO
WEBSITE
Type Scheme: Helvetica (Website) Neutra (Museum Decoration)
4. Existing Application
5. Keywords (impressions / perceptions / interceptions) Curiosity inspiration educational earth global history accuracy discovery international exploration science adventure
6. Mood Board
7. The Competition 1. Washington, D.C. The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History is astonishingly the size of 18 football fields, with 325,000 square feet of exhibitions and public space. That means a game plan is in order. The museum’s Web site is a great planning tool with family guides you can download before you visit, to help get kids excited. Once there, head straight to one of the kids’ museum exhibits like the Discovery Room, for interactive displays. One of my favorite exhibits is the newly renovated Sant Ocean Hall. The showpiece here is Phoenix, a 45-foot-long model of a real North Atlantic right whale that has been tracked since birth. 10th St. & Constitution Ave. NW., tel. 202-633-1000. www.mnh.si.edu. Open daily, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Free admission. 2. Chicago Sue, the world’s largest and best-preserved Tyrannosaurus rex fossil, is the big draw at the Field Museum, but of course, there is much more to see here. Check out the 19,000-square-foot “Ancient Americas” exhibit, which explores 13,000 years of human history. Make sure to take your kids to the PlayLab where they can dress up as animals, examine insects in amber, pull out drawers and discover hidden objects, among other interactive activities. On weekends, check out special interpretive station activities located throughout the museum—see what your name looks like in Egyptian hieroglyphs, dissect an owl pellet or put together a map of Africa. 1400 S. Lake Shore Dr., tel. 312-922-9410. www.fieldmuseum.org. Open Mon. to Sat., 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sun., 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets: adults, $15; children ages 3-11, $10. 3. New York City The American Museum of Natural History has 45 halls to explore, but the museum’s fossil halls are by far the most popular attraction. Housing the world’s largest collection of vertebrate fossils, the museum showcases nearly one million specimens. Other must-sees include the Hall of Human Origins, which traces human evolution and the Hall of Meteorites, which boasts a 34-ton iron meteorite fragment called “Ahnighito.” The Discovery Room is a great way to get an overview of the museum for families. There are behind-the-scenes displays and every major field of museum science and research, from anthropology to zoology, is explained. Main Entrance at 79th St. at Central Park West, tel. 212-769-5100. www.amnh.org. Open daily, 10 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. Suggested general admission: adults $15; children $8.50.
4. Pittsburgh The Carnegie Museum of Natural History, with 20 exhibit halls, was founded in 1895 by Andrew Carnegie. The Dinosaurs in Their Time exhibit (formerly the Dinosaur Hall) is the big crowd-pleaser, with two Tyrannosaurus rex skeletons posed in mid-fight. TheHall of Ancient Egypt boasts 2,500 artifacts, including the showpiece—a 30-foot royal funerary boat that is more than 3,800 years old. Make sure you check out a “family museum bag” from the Discovery Room for an interactive family museum tour. Themes include “Visit My Home,” which directs you through a Polar World snow house and ends in a Southwest pueblo. Puzzles, books and touchable materials help kids better understand the exhibits. 4400 Forbes Ave., tel. 412-622-3131. www.carnegiemnh.org. Open Tues. to Sat., 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thurs., 10 a.m. to 8 p.m; Sun., noon to 5 p.m. Tickets: adults, $15; children ages 3 to 18, $11. 5. Ann Arbor The University of Michigan Exhibit Museum of Natural History’s main attraction is the Hall of Evolution which traces 600 million years of life on Earth through fossils, models, and dioramas. In the Michigan Wildlife Gallery, there’s a large collection of native Great Lakes birds, mammals, reptiles and amphibians, with taxidermy mounts and habitat scenes. Great ways for families to explore the museum are the downloadable themed scavenger hunts on the Web site. 1109 Geddes Ave., tel. 734-764-0478. www.lsa.umich.edu/exhibitmuseum. Open Mon. to Sat., 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Sun., noon to 5 p.m. Free admission for groups of 10 or fewer.
Statements
1. A purpose statement
The Field Museum inspires curiosity about life and Earth while exploring how the world came to be and how we can make it a better place
2. A character statement
As educators, we inspire wonder and understanding.
3. A brand position
The Field Museum of Natural History is a natural history museum in Chicago, and is one of the largest such museums in the world. The museum maintains its status as a premier natural history museum through the size and quality of its educational and scientific programs, as well as its extensive scientific specimen and artifact collections.
4. A brand platform
The Field Museum exists to INSPIRE. They are the only Natural History Museum that the worlds largest and best-preserved Tyrannosaurus rex fossil, Sue, and a wide variety of collections that will solve scientific mysteries and fulfilled people’s curiosity.
Design Process
1. Sketch Ideas
2. Vector Explorations
3. Font Explorations
Linotype Didot Initials Garamond small caps
Bodoni 72 smallcaps Book
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Engravers LH Bold Face
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AT Rotis Semiserif 65
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Ailerons
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Neutra Text Book SC
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The Field Museum
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Carrosserie Light
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The Field Museum Delicate
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4. Layout Explorations
The Field Museum
5. Color Explorations
6. Color Palette Explorations
Final Design
1. Applications
1400 S Lake Shore Dr, Chicago, IL 60605 (312) 922-9410 research@fieldmuseum.org
1400 S Lake Shore Dr, Chicago, IL 60605 (312) 922-9410 research@fieldmuseum.org
Rudiger Bieler Curator
A T. rex Named
SUE
A T. rex Named
SUE