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Poppin' popcorn slowed down (Photo/Witte Museum)
Witness the Witte Museum's take on the seconds all around us
If time flies like an arrow, and bananas fly like...well, fruit, leave to the Witte Museum to incorporate the two along with everything else measurable in seconds.
“Playing with Time,” the latest in a series of unique exhibits at the Witte Museum breaks down, speeds up and makes passing moments pliable for your entertainment and enlightenment. Their showcase gallery is now replete with stations that, among other things, allow you to see the entire growth process of a plant in milliseconds, slow down the subtleties of the human face and even play with age progression technology.
According to Shannon Huntington Standley, director of Public Relations and Retail Marketing for the Witte, it is continuing to blur the line between art and the visceral experience not often found in traditional museums.
“When we first saw this exhibit, all the adults in the room thought it was very fun,” admitted Standley. “That is why we decided to do it. Our first expectations were that both the children and the adults were going to be doing and having fun at these interactive stations. Sure enough, that's how it's been. When you walk into the gallery, the parents are right there alongside the children waiting for their turn.”
The Kathleen and Curtis Gunn Gallery of the museum will host the exhibit from June 20 through September 27, and, as per usual, the response has been resounding. The installation, a co-production between the Science Museum of Minnesota and Red Hill Studios, has the support of the nation's largest science-based exhibition entity, the National Science Foundation.
“We actively strive for the hands-on experience in all the exhibits we bring,” Standley explained. “One of the big ideas the Witte believes in is learning by doing. Every exhibit we try to get has to be highly interactive. We don't just want to target the children. This is a family museum and we want all generations in the family to learn together. I think that surprises the parents when they first get here.”
“Playing with Time” is easily one of the most multi-faceted installations in recent memory because of its applications in nature, food production, solar patterns and enhanced digital photography. In many cases, the basis for many of the interactive stations is technology not often seen outside of a formal laboratory. In even more cases, exhibits like “Playing with Time” is the publics' only interaction with such technology.
“I think to make it artistic is very important, especially for the Witte. This exhibit is very artistic because these are things you cannot see naturally. These are exhibits that are scientific and artful. Because you are using this technology for yourself, you are getting results that are artistic,” said Standley.
Standley echoed the sentiment of museum patrons citing that many of the examples in the exhibit are common objects being appreciated on various levels. Yet for as simple as it is to see the finished product, there is a small army of museum staff that makes such installations a reality. The amount of work to create partnerships with flagship museums across the country is no easy task since budgets for top-tier exhibits are only feeling more strain.
“It would surprise people how far in advance we begin,” Standley commented. “People see it the day it opens, but we have been working behind the scenes sometimes six months to a year in advance. It takes the entire staff here from the planning to the installation. It involves everyone from the management team to the public programs department that plans all the employee activities.”
For their effort, they have a full slate of upcoming exhibits pending for the remainder of the year. The following of which will be “Circus Folk: Secrets Behind the Big Top.” The installation, which has not been in San Antonio since 2003, will unveil the life and bond between those who live as traveling entertainers and as a microcosm of cities unto themselves.
The Witte Museum is available online at www.wittemuseum.org.
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