Master of Arts, University of Akron, 2014, Theatre Arts-Arts Administration

Informative content and visual presentation are each critical when providing a meaningful museum experience for both the casual and sophisticated visitor. For an effective learning experience to take place, knowledge must be turned into information then work in tandem the principles of graphic and exhibition design to achieve successful visual communication. This topic is important to explore because although there are experts in this field, the concepts need to be distilled for a wider audience of museum administration professionals– in all key departments of the museum personnel structure. A succinct document will greatly enhance the collective understanding of the obvious public function of museums and exhibitions, to reveal their higher purpose, which is education. This paper could provide a museum director, education director, curator or an exhibition designer with the incite needed to put together a museum show that is interesting, engaging and educational. It would also be an informative resource for those interested in the new technology developments used to aid a museum visitor.

Committee: Sapienza Neil Mr. (Advisor); Durand Pope Mr. (Committee Member); Gary Holliday Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Art Education; Arts Management; Design; Museum Studies; Museums; Technology

MARCH, University of Cincinnati, 2021, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning: Architecture

Museums as learning institutions have been around for centuries, originating as personal collections within private homes and extending to open exhibitions that anyone may attend. The ritual of attending a museum, similar in manner to other ceremonial activities, is parallel to that of a reverential experience with an additional facet of learning. But how will the postmodern museum look and function? What are strategies developed by museums and cultural centers that will best heighten the overall experience and perspectives gained by visitors? While there are various models of learning and identities that help define typical museum visitors and why they visit, there needs to be a more modern lens applied to this methodology to understand guests in the 21st century, especially in light of recent events including the Covid-19 pandemic. Such places need to be more resilient and flexible to respond to issues presently or imminently existing and not simply to preserve previous moments in time. By reflecting on previous practices and understanding the present need of institutions such as these, this thesis will explore scenarios in which a modern museum is combined with an academic complex and community cultural center serving a variety of demographics. The goal of having such a place as a one-stop destination would be to create a large overall snapshot of the University of Cincinnati, Clifton Heights, and greater Cincinnati area communities, engaging diverse groups of people at various levels. A building and surrounding urban design layout are envisioned in proximity to UC's campus, presented in models and drawings, and described in an in-depth essay extrapolated primarily from research on the narrative experience and relevance of physical museums. The physical nature of the museum will challenge preconceived notions of what these buildings should offer, showing a holistic perspective of what they can grow to be. The investigation also shows how a postmodern museum/cu (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Elizabeth Riorden M.Arch. (Committee Chair); Michael McInturf M.Arch. (Committee Member) Subjects: Architecture

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2015, Theatre

Theatrical design is difficult to exhibit as Art. During the course of the twentieth-century, prominent theatre designers have sought ways to share their revolutionary ideas and remarkable work with an outside audience. In this dissertation, I examine the boundaries, struggles and methodologies found within contemporary design exhibition at the Prague Quadrennial. More specifically, I explore a philosophical shift taking place between the 2007 and 2011 Prague Quadrennials, as the event's artistic leadership repositions the scenographic underpinnings toward a more inclusive theory of performance design. This resultant shift occurs due to several trends throughout the Prague Quadrennial's history including: decentralization, the inclusion of performance and the contextualization of scenographic artifacts. I examine the significant impact of this philosophical shift on the event's curatorial visions, audience interactions and connections with the city of Prague.

Committee: Michael Ellison PhD (Advisor); Ashutosh Sohoni PhD (Committee Member); Jonathan Chambers PhD (Committee Member); Steve Boone MFA (Committee Member) Subjects: Design; Theater; Theater History; Theater Studies

MDES, University of Cincinnati, 2013, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning: Design

The common ways of offering information and educating visitors in museums are proving audio, interpretive signs and video displays. However, non-interactive ways don't work well at engaging audiences. Artifacts in most museums are not allowed to be touched by visitors. They are usually put into glass display cabinets for protection. This thesis focuses on identify issues of user experience design in museums and define interactive product requirements for museum exhibitions as a harmonious whole system in order to provide audiences exciting experiences during visiting. Among archaeological artifacts, ceramics play an important role in understanding a region's culture and technology. However, for audiences from a different cultural background, it is hard to understand when there is a lack of contextual information. There are also lots of stories behind ceramics, which are worth detailed explanations. However, only a limited amount of information can be presented to audiences in the museums. For that reason, this thesis uses ceramics as an entry point and discusses how to present knowledge of exhibition subject and artifacts information to audiences by using interaction designs. By applying the Goal-Directed design approach in the process, this thesis is seeking for solutions to provide a better museum experience and creates multiple prototypes of interaction design for ceramic exhibition. The last chapter of the thesis summarizes findings from the process and extends the finding to general design requirements for designing interaction products or system for museum exhibitions.

Committee: Craig Vogel M.I.D. (Committee Chair); Katie Parker (Committee Member); Renee Seward (Committee Member) Subjects: Design

Master of Arts (MA), Ohio University, 2022, Art History (Fine Arts)

A significant artist's work can echo throughout time and continue to reappear in a modern context. This thesis focuses on the influence of visual culture and how Northern Renaissance art continues to interpolate in contemporary references. Hieronymus Bosch's The Garden of Earthly Delights (Figure 1) inspired various mediums, such as painting, photography, set and exhibition design, fashion design, and album artwork throughout history. However, previous academic research has not thoroughly explored the postmodern references tracing back to Bosch. This thesis aims to demonstrate the visual throughline between artists from Hieronymus Bosch to the Surrealists of the 20th century and contemporary artists such as British fashion photographer Tim Walker and set designer Shona Heath. This thesis examines various artistic disciplines through formalism and iconography studies. It centers on the work of Walker and Heath and how they reference Bosch in Walker's "The Garden of Earthly Delights" series. This thesis examines the longtime creative collaboration between Walker and Heath. More specifically, through Heath's surrealist set designs for Walker's photography. In addition, her exhibition designs for "Tim Walker: The Garden of Earthly Delights" (2017-2018) at the Het Noordbrabants Museum in Den Bosch and Walker's retrospective, "Tim Walker: Wonderful Things" (2019) at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. Next, this thesis discusses Boschian revivals in fashion design, including Alexander McQueen's posthumous collection and McQueen's connection to Walker. It examines Walker and Heath's set design for Harry Styles' Fine Line album photo shoot in 2019 and its relation to Bosch. Ultimately, this thesis details the relationship between the work of Hieronymus Bosch and Tim Walker's interpretation of The Garden of Earthly Delights, the visual intersections between them, and why the surreal continues to be fashionable in art.

Committee: Jennie Klein (Advisor); Basil Masri Zada (Committee Member); Christi Camper Moore (Committee Member) Subjects: Art History

MFA, Kent State University, 2018, College of the Arts / School of Art

Spreading prolifically and harmfully, invasive species overpower the areas they inhabit. This body of work contextualizes the concept of invasive species into five main parts. Each element, ivy vines, honeysuckle plants, rabbits, black beetles and cicadas, are classified as invasive for their destructive tendencies. In addition to this, each serves as a metaphor for different aspects and characteristics of myself and life. Whether they be representative of a moment from childhood or of a trial of adulthood. "Invasive" presents a series of 23 suspended fabric panels and 3 crafted benches that come together to create a large scale three-dimensional sculpture to capture the essence of my concept.

Committee: Janice Lessman-Moss (Advisor); Taryn McMahon (Committee Member); John-Michael Warner (Committee Member); Andrew Kuebeck (Committee Member) Subjects: Fine Arts; Folklore; Interior Design; Textile Research

Master of Arts, The Ohio State University, 2017, Arts Policy and Administration

Using Simon Sinek's `Golden Circles' framework, this study begins by identifying what a hub for creative engagement is—a space that provides opportunities for visitors to foster creativity through participatory engagement. This study then explores how large regional art museums implement hubs for creative engagement. Using the Wonderkamers in the Gemeentemuseum in the Netherlands and the Center for Creativity in the Columbus Museum of Art in the United States as case studies, this study relies on a mixed-methods approach of synthesizing publicly available sources, curator interviews, and participant observations to understand how these spaces impact visitor creativity and visitor engagement. Participant observations reveal that visitors of all ages are attracted to hubs for creative engagement, that visitors are more likely to choose participatory over passive engagement when given the option, and—per Stuart Brown's (2010) typology of play—that social, creative, and object play occur most frequently when they participate. By comparing these findings to the curators' intentions for these spaces, this study also reveals how effectively these hubs for creative engagement meet their intended goals. Finally, this study finds that creativity and innovation are understood in largely the same way in both the United States and the Netherlands, making hubs for creative engagement an asset for art museums in more than one region of the world. Consequently, this study provides a framework for how to implement a hub for creative engagement that can be utilized by any applicable art museum.

Committee: Joni Acuff PhD (Advisor); Shoshanah Goldberg-Miller PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Arts Management; Museum Studies; Museums

MARCH, University of Cincinnati, 2012, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning: Architecture

Those in power have traditionally defined the historical narrative in a tangible way, with monuments and physical symbols of culture. Those without the resources to build leave only traces of their narrative behind; these traces may become harder to discern as those who created them fade into the past. These fragments left behind in an urban fabric are accumulated and their organization lends itself to the framing of an overlooked narrative. The archive is a physical manifestation of the processing of these fragments. The works of John Soane, Carlo Scarpa, and Peter Zumthor, in addition to the writings of Alois Riegl, Michel Foucault, and Rem Koolhaas, address a means of working with the fragment in architecture and history. Within the structure of the archive, there are three ways of working with fragments. First is a chronological, layered approach, focusing on the origin of the fragment. Second, the fragments may be sorted and classified according to their similarities or differences, focusing on typologies. Lastly, the fragments may be combined in a way that crafts a fictional narrative that presents history as it never truly existed. Through an examination of the methodologies of archiving, a framework can be developed for the appropriation of fragments, both tangible and intangible, in Philadelphia's Old City. This framework will structure the crafting of the overlooked history of Philadelphia's industrial workers during the nineteenth century.

Committee: Aarati Kanekar PhD (Committee Chair); Michael McInturf MARCH (Committee Member) Subjects: Architecture

MARCH, University of Cincinnati, 2009, Design, Architecture, Art and Planning : Architecture (Master of)

Andy Warhol once predicted that in the future “all department stores will become museums, and all museums will become department stores.” While these building types are not yet synonymous, many new cultural projects accept the addition of commerce without reservation. Critics have denounced these increasingly close ties between cultural institutions and consumption in recent years; however, the critical discourse gives little thought to the inherent meaning and multiple narratives that reside in everyday objects. Rather than repress the ties between cultural institutions and consumer culture, this thesis explores their common histories. In addition, it reveals the challenges inherent in interpreting and displaying artifacts of everyday life. Similar to everyday objects, buildings have multiple lives that enact over time as uses, occupants, context, and interpretations change. The role of the museum curator resembles the architect, as both typically interpret and privilege one of these lives over others. This thesis explores the methods by which the architect interprets the ordinary. It uses an existing urban condition to question the approach to a building that is neither precious enough to preserve nor decrepit enough to destroy. How does the architect negotiate between the multiple histories of the building and the current needs of the community? At what point does the architect stop designing and allow new occupants to reappropriate the building and enact their own narratives within the existing frame?

Committee: Rebecca Williamson (Committee Chair); John Hancock (Committee Chair) Subjects: Architecture; Museums