Workshop The Design of Natural Science

What should a contemporary museum of natural science look like? How should such a museum greet its visitors? How should its exhibits, and navigation between them, be set up? Answers to these questions will be sought by participants of a workshop organized jointly by Strelka and the Timiryazev State Biological Museum. The museum is currently preparing to undergo significant changes and expects to become one of the leading museums of natural history in Russia and in all of Europe. The workshop will assist the museum staff in planning these alterations, and the most successful solutions may serve as a foundation for their work. Coming to assist the participants, the museum and Strelka are two Dutch designers whose forte is exhibition spaces: Marcel Schmalgemeijer and Mariëlle Tolenaar, who have worked with the leading museums of the Netherlands, including the Rijksmuseum, the Van Gogh Museum, and the Stedelijk Museum. Coming to talk about the Timiryazev Museum will be head of interactive programming there, Sofia Pantyulina. The workshop will also include a discussion of the prospects for Russian museums as a whole led by Natalia Kopelyanskaya, an expert creative team «Museum Solutions».

Senior architecture students and young architects will also be invited to participate in the workshop. Space in the workshop is limited and participants will be chosen on a competitive basis. Prospective participants must submit to registration form by May 25 a free-form essay (no more than 2500 characters with spaces) on the topic «Design Alters the Museum; the Museum Alters Design». In the end of the essay, applicants must include descriptions or examples of their work, or links to such examples or descriptions; a few words about oneself or one’s group (if you want to participate in the workshop as a bureau or a team); and a list of any architectural programs you are proficient in.

Knowledge of English is obligatory for participation in the workshop.

The final deadline for submission of applications to participate in the workshop is June 22. The makeup of the group selected to participate will be announced June 25.