Electropolis
Client/Company: The Bakken Museum
Project Description: Electropolis presents museum visitors with a combination of “how things were” and “how things work,” framing basic principles of electricity within the history of electrification in Minneapolis. The exhibit features interactive components where visitors can learn about electrical power generation and distribution. Designed to engage children ages 4-8 in educational play and learning, it also promotes collaboration. A short central table anchors the exhibit space, providing an activity where visitors young and old can work together to connect circuits, spin generators, and light up a model city. The Bakken received a Minnesota Historical and Cultural Heritage Grant for research and development of the Electropolis exhibit plan.
Julie’s Role: Project Manager / Exhibit Developer / Writer
With the help of a state grant, The Bakken Museum conducted preliminary planning and transitioned into production of Electropolis as I was joining the team. While most of the exhibit components had already been determined, I conducted all of the content research and wrote all of the exhibit panels and instructional text. I’m no scientist, but I knew that if I could understand the scientific concepts such as electromagnetism, I could distill and present them in a way that would make sense to the average visitor and, specifically, our target audience of elementary age children. The exhibit combined both science and history, so I delved into the city and state archives to find and license historic imagery that would best illustrate what life was like as electricity became a way of life for residents. I also worked with our curator to determine the best artifacts to display from our collections and those of our partner organizations.
"Electropolis" is geared toward elementary-age children and kids as young as four. Image credit: The Bakken Museum
Visitors power the imaginary city of “Electropolis” and test magnetic properties. Image credit: The Bakken Museum
Artifacts, archival video, and touchable objects show how electricity changed our way of life. Image credit: The Bakken Museum
A timeline discusses different forms of alternative energy used in Minnesota. Image credit: The Bakken Museum
Visitors spin a wheel to light up a replica of the Foshay Tower, a Minneapolis landmark. Image credit: The Bakken Museum
Visitors learn how to make their own electricity with a magnet, coil of wire, and movement. Image credit: The Bakken Museum
The “Electropolis” table accommodates many people and encourages collaborative play. Image credit: The Bakken Museum
Prototyping for Kids
I coordinated with the exhibit designer/fabricator during design, production, and installation. In collaboration, we spent significant time prototyping the mechanical components of the exhibit. While The Bakken serves approximately 10,000 students annually through its field trip program, many of whom are fourth graders, parts of Electropolis were specifically designed for visitors as young as four years old. It was imperative that we test with this group. We looked at the durability of the materials (kids can break anything), assessed the children’s fine motor skills to see if they could physically perform the activities with ease, and evaluated their comprehension of the basic concepts. Based on this iterative prototyping, we implemented changes that improved on all of these areas.
The “Electropolis” table was designed to be robust, using sturdy material and parts. Photo credit: The Bakken Museum