Content Drives Design as Solid Light Curates an Engaging Visitor Experience

What Will be in The Dot Experience?   

The Dot Experience will house a world-class collection of artifacts and tell many stories. With so many artifacts and so many stories to tell, one of the challenges we face is selecting what content will be displayed in our re-imagined museum. We spoke to our friends at Solid Light to learn more about how content and design work in tandem. Eleanor Riggs, Creative Content Manager, and Ben Jett, Creative Team Director told us how APH and Solid Light have worked together in this process. 

Working in Tandem 

When curating the items in The Dot Experience, APH and Solid Light “lean on each other’s expertise”, Eleanor told us. While APH can provide expertise in the field, the folks at Solid Light have mastered the art of storytelling. They balance the things we want to show, with what will be exciting for a visitor to experience. Eleanor and Ben have poured over the artifacts and documents in our collection and have chosen the items that we think are most essential. Together, we are creating a visitor experience that will be meaningful and engaging for all. 

Clarity for Visitors  

While telling stories in exhibits, the mission is “clarity for visitors,” Eleanor shared. In every project the goal is to create an exhibit that is going to be exciting, clear, and consistent. In The Dot Experience, with our “touch everything” mantra, that means sorting through what is tactically interesting and meaningful for visitors.  

As we design and imagine The Dot Experience, Eleanor is “focusing on really taking the one piece that is essential and making that available in multiple ways of taking in that information, whether it’s through Braille or a tactile representation or the physical object, or its words, or a picture.” Everything will be able to be accessed in multiple ways to ensure visitors can each explore the content of The Dot Experience independently.  

Content Drives Design 

As we curate the contents of The Dot Experience, the design of the space takes shape simultaneously. “Every project does have a slightly unique communication style. “It’s really about clarity and essentialness and detectability” Ben explained. The design is directly driven by the content to create a cohesive experience for visitors. With the goal to “create a space that is interesting in every way imaginable and is navigable and is accessible” the distinct communication style works in tandem with the design.  

As they forge stories told in The Dot Experience, Ben and Elanor strive to create a meaningful experience, while keeping mind that “the amount of information we want to give to people can’t be so dense that eyes, minds, and hands are all exhausted at the end of this.” Our focus on communication in multiple ways, our commitment to accessibility, and the approachable nature of the attraction creates an immersive experience for all.