Short-Term Trends in Long-Term Projects
Long-term exhibitions almost always feature an element that got included because it was a hot trend.
But is that element part of a long-term trend? Or a short-term one?
Hard to know in advance.
We’ve talked about tech revolutions that weren’t so revolutionary. But dead trends aren’t limited to tech. And no trend is invulnerable.
Every office in the world got redesigned to be open. But then every office worker in the world said they hated that. (And then that other thing happened that made lots of people not like offices at all any more.)
Lots of cars got a giant dashboard touchscreen. But now lots of car buyers don’t want them, because they cause crashes.
And let's not even talk about Livestrong bracelets, Gangnam Style, Harlem Shake, fidget spinners, cell phones that worked like walkie talkies, Game of Thrones, dabbing, selfie sticks, the Macarena, or furbies.
(I won’t add NFTs to that list for now, out of sympathy.)
So, how many of those did we all join in on? Be honest. A few?
All?
Here’s the thing:
Are we building short-term trends into our long-term projects? Trends die, no matter how popular (except maybe this one).
What happens when they do?
Warmly,
Jonathan
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MtM Word of the Day:
Oddy test. [AHD-ee] A test to detect toxic off-gassing from a material proposed to be in the same airspace as a sensitive museum object (e.g. in a display case). Invented by scientist William Oddy at the British Museum. Involves sealing a sample of the material in a chamber with various metal chips to see if they corrode.
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Deadline Coming Up:
Have you worked on a great exhibition or experience design project recently? The SEGD Global Design Awards late deadline is this week, on Friday, 28 February. Final deadline is 15 March. “Since 1987, the SEGD Global Design Awards have set the standard of excellence for experiential design, honoring work that connects people to place.” (And I’m not just saying that because I’m the Jury Chair this year.)
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Going to MAAM Building Museums?
I’ll be in St. Louis 5-7 March (soon!) and I’ll be part of the first keynote on Thursday, 6 March. If you’ll be there, drop me a line, I’d love to meet up IRL.
(Yeah, there sure are a lot of footers in MtM emails these days. Don’t worry, it won’t last!)
