PRM: Meetings, Meetings

The past three days of my internship at the Peoria Riverfront Museum have been filled mostly with the logistical aspects of developing an exhibit. I've talked multiple times with Kristan about my ideas for how to present the Gypsy Coeds' story, and I've also developed a more formal (but still flexible) timeline for the project.

Last Thursday (5/14/15) was mostly spent hashing out my ideas for the different components of the exhibit. With approximately 2,000 square feet to cover, I was unsure whether that's too little or too much! However, I quickly discovered that there's so many things to talk about with these Gypsy Coeds--who they were, the history of the car, Henry Ford, road trips then and now, where did they go. Soon, I found myself trying to think logically about how all of this would fit in the space! But in talking with Kristan and the exhibit designer Cory, they assured me that my plans could be made into reality. And with that, I was on my way.

I disucssed with Kristan some of my more technologically-advanced ideas to really make this exhibit engaging and interactive. I wanted to have a touch-screen map with embedded video (possible--yay!), a listening gallery, and an interactive map on an iPad projected on one wall that would allow visitors to share their road trip experiences. I even wanted that one to be linked to social media. While the first idea is possible, Kristan told me, the other ones would have to be tweaked to fit the museum's capabilities. Instead of a listening gallery, the museum can create QR codes to allow visitors to listen to any oral histories and podcasts on their own smart phones. It is even possible for non-smart phone folks to "rent" an iPod from the front desk if they choose. Additionally, the whole interactive map idea would have to be toned down and done in a more old-school fashion: simple postcards attached to a static map of North America will suffice. I'm still excited about these ideas, and I truly believe they'll turn out great in the space.

On Monday (5/18/15), I spent much of the day firming up my project timeline, organizing my research, and planning for the meeting I had with the cars' owners this morning. I discovered that forecasting a schedule of deadlines is very difficult, especially if you know that new information could pop up at any minute that you could not have predicted. Kristan told me today that she thinks my timeline is a bit ambitious, but was pleased with my understanding of the finer details that go into exhibit development. I obviously don't want to forsake accuracy and detail to simply meet a deadline that can be flexible, and Kristan assured me she would advise me further on when I really need to meet certain deadlines.

Another part of the audio aspect of the gallery will be podcasts that cover three major topic areas: the history of the Model T, gender and mobility, and the Silver Streak coming back to Central Illinois. I spent much of Monday afternoon finding sources that I could use in developing the gender and mobility podcast, which I myself will write and narrate. I'm very excited about this aspect of my internship because it allows me to do a bit of research and writing that I may not get to do with the label writing. Kristan was really excited about this idea, and I really believe it will add even more to the visitors' experiences.

Finally, today (5/20/15) was spent largely in a meeting with the owners of the Silver Streak. I thoroughly enjoyed telling them all of my ideas, and they were excited about how much I had already delved into this story. They were able to provide me with even more photographs and tidbits of the story that I was not aware of previously, and I think they came out of the meeting with the peace of mind that the girls would be represented with proper respect. I'm excited to work with them on writing label copy and choosing some of the images to put in the exhibit. We additionally came up with some marketing strategies for the exhibit as well as the book they are publishing on the Gypsy Coeds.

After the meeting, I jumped right into the beginning of choosing images for certain aspects of the exhibition. I'm finding this incredibly difficult. There are so many great photos to choose from in the collections; choosing just a few to tell such a rich story proves tedious. But it's still so rewarding to be able to look back on all of these memories and know that I am fortunate enough to be trusted to tell this story to more people.