Exhibit Design/Development/Management

FOR THE GREATEST NUMBER: THE NEW DEAL REVISITED

Client: The Free Library of Philadelphia

Role: Exhibition Designer

For the Greatest Number (Free Library of Philadelphia, 2021) explores the legacy of the WPA through the lens of current events. It’s been ninety years since the crisis of the Great Depression inspired the New Deal’s government investment and aid. But it’s not just history. The country is again facing a choice: What do we owe our neighbors? What does our country owe us?

The Great Depression was a national crisis that affected everyone—but not equally. Inherited wealth and white supremacy have a long history of making bad times less bad for those with privilege. Here in Philadelphia, unemployment was double the rate of the surrounding suburbs, nearly 100,000 people were evicted, and the city provided no organized relief.

The art and objects funded by New Deal programs show us how workers shaped the country in the 1930s. The posters and prints are beautiful, but they are also an argument about our national values. How does the continuing legacy of white supremacy shade claims about equal rights? Is hard work the highest good? Do we care about the land, or our neighbors, or the future? We hope visitors to the exhibit or its programs are inspired to think about these questions and the ways in which the people of the United States have faced crises before, and how we can face today’s crises.

Medieval Life: European Manuscripts in Philadelphia Collections

Client: The Free Library of Philadelphia

Role: Exhibition Designer

Medieval Life (Free Library of Philadelphia, 2020) explores daily life in medieval Europe through manuscripts from the collections of the Free Library of Philadelphia and 14 other nearby institutions. Varied books and objects from the 12th through 16th centuries illuminate how people practiced religion, interacted with their governments, worked, built families, and experienced the natural environment. This exhibition considers how medieval Europeans thought about their lives and the world around them, and how their concerns relate to our own in 21st-century Philadelphia.

My Home, My History

Client: The National Archives: Philadelphia

Role: Project Manager/ Exhibition Developer/ Organizational Representative and Liaison

My Home, My History (National Museum for Jewish American History, annually 2016-2019) is a student curated exhibition that is the culmination of a semester long project Esperanza Academy Charter High School freshman research not only their personal family histories but that of their home and neighborhood by using primary documents from the National Archives and Records Administration, census records and personal interviews.

RIVER ALIVE!

Institution: Independence Seaport Museum

Role: Exhibition Development/Conceptualization

River Alive! (Independence Seaport Museum, 20explore the importance of keeping our waterways clean, how we are all connected, and what you can do to be a river hero through fun, interactive exhibit components that will have you saying, “Wow! The river really is alive!” Awarded the American Alliance for Museum’s Special Achievement Award for Interactivity in 2019, experience this landmark exhibit on your next trip to Independence Seaport Museum! This exhibit is made possible by the generous support of The William Penn Foundation.

Patriots and Pirates

Institution: Independence Seaport Museum

Role: Exhibition Designer and Project Manager

Patriots and Pirates (Independence Seaport Museum, 2015) is a 4,000 sq ft interactive exhibition detailing the rich history of the birth of the United States Navy through the lens of political turmoil and piracy on the high seas.

Tides of Freedom & Disasters on the Delaware

Institution: Independence Seaport Museum

Role: Project Manager/ Exhibition Manager

As Exhibits Manager at Independence Seaport Museum, I managed the timeline and budget for both major exhibitions. I served as a primary contact for subcontractors and managed the deinstallation of the previous exhibitions in the respective spaces and complete installation. I also provided interactive repairs and oversaw general exhibition maintenance including remedial changes. In both exhibitions I participated in content research/development and remedial graphic design as needed.

Community Gallery Series

Institution: Independence Seaport Museum

Role: Exhibition Development and Design/Project Manager

The Community Gallery series brings community groups and individuals from across the Philadelphia region to work directly with museum staff to create an exhibition. Community partners, with assistance, design, develop and install a short term exhibition and supply supplemental programming.