Genius & Generosity

Genius & Generosity - The Elliott Story

The introductory gallery at the Elliott Museum in Stuart Florida gives a glimpse into the life of Sterling Elliott, who the museum is named after.

Through the exhibition visitors discover Sterling’s early life as an inventor, his combined interests in bicycles and social justice, and the business machine empire that he built with his son Harmon.

Entry

Shown here is one of Sterling’s early inventions, the knot-tying machine, which was so impressive that Thomas Edison publicly called Sterling a genius! Also shown here is Sterling’s Quadricycle, whose steering mechanism influences automobile engineering and design to this very day.

Entry Long View

A view into the “Genius & Generosity” exhibition.

Harness Racing Sulky

Sterling Elliott was good friends with his neighbors, the Stanley Brothers. Their shared interests and conversations inspired some of Sterling’s inventions, such as the harness racing sulky located in this part of the exhibit. Elliott’s sulky designs changed harness racing completely, and modern harness racing sulkies still reflect the improvements Sterling Elliott developed over a hundred years ago.

Antique Bicycles

Sterling Elliott not only built bicycles, but he also called for social reforms that would secure more rights for women and African-Americans. The Sterling Bicycle Company manufactured bicycles specifically designed for women when other bicycle companies refused to do so. The top two bicycles featured here show design elements built into Elliott bicycles marketed toward women.

Business Machines Empire

The start of the Elliott Addressing Machine Company came about because of Sterling Elliott’s involvement with bicycles. To mail tens of thousands of subscriptions for “The Bicycling World” magazine more efficiently and quickly than writing out every address by hand, Sterling invented one of his first devices for labeling mail that used address stencils that customers could create themselves. During much of the 20th century, the Elliott Addressing Machine Company was one of the most successful businesses of its kind in the entire world

Looking Back View

Looking back toward the entrance of the “Genius & Generosity” exhibition.

Muzeiko Museum Sofia Bulgaria

Muzeiko Fullbright Workshops

As part of being awarded a Fulbright Specialist grant, Paul traveled to Bulgaria for several weeks to present interactive workshops on topics related to museum exhibit design, development, and prototyping. Not only did Paul partner again with colleagues from the Muzeiko Children’s Science Museum in Sofia, but he also gave workshops to museum professionals from all around Bulgaria. Click below to read a blog post about 10 things Paul learned as a Fulbright Specialist in Bulgaria:

Prototype Toys

Paul always packs an extra suitcase filled with materials, toys, and prototype examples to share with workshop participants.

Fullbright Workshop Crew

The core group from the first week of Fulbright Specialist workshops included not only Muzeiko staff, but also architects, designers, and entrepreneurs from Sofia.

Telling Stories

Workshop participants learned that the most important thing inside museums is not just “stuff” but “stories” as well.

Changes In The Museum

Paul helped the Muzeiko crew engage in some rapid exhibit prototyping directly in the Museum’s galleries.

Bulgarian Museum Folks

50 museum professionals from throughout Bulgaria joined together to attend one of Paul’s exhibit workshops.

Acton Discovery Museum

Acton Discovery Museum Exhibits

The Discovery Museum in Acton, Massachusetts reopened in the early months of 2018 after combining two separate museums into a newly expanded and completely accessible building. Paul Orselli and POW! led the design and development of all seven new science exhibition galleries in this award-winning facility. In addition, Paul managed all external fabricators and supervised the final installation of exhibit components and environmental graphics in the new science galleries. Enjoy some selected images from inside the reimagined Discovery Museum.

Da Vinci Workshop Exhibition

Visitors to the da Vinci Workshop gallery use tools, tinker, and design, like the artist, scientist, engineer, and inventor Leonardo da Vinci.

Light And Color Exhibition

Scientists of all ages can immerse themselves in this vividly engaging exhibit gallery on the properties of light and color.

Math Exhibition

This gallery of fun, hands-on activities uses real world, visual interpretations of mathematical concepts to show that math is all around us!

Sound Exhibition

Young scientists and their families can explore and experience the amazing properties of sound by creating, seeing, hearing and feeling waves and physical vibrations!

Water Exhibition

Adults and children alike pour, whirl, float, and get hands wet as they control, move, divert, and explore the properties of water.

Universities & Museums Workshops

Universities and Museums Workshops

UArts

Paul has been a regular guest lecturer at the graduate Museum Design programs at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia.

MAH Museum Camp

Paul was one of the counselors at the first “Museum Camp” held by Nina Simon at the Museum of Art and History in Santa Cruz, CA.

FIT

The graduate program in Exhibition Design at the Fashion Institute of Technology has invited Paul to give Master’s Classes in Exhibit Prototyping to students for over a decade!

Fairbanks

Paul gave staff workshops at the Fairbanks (Alaska) Children’s Museum shortly after its grand opening.

Germany Workshop

Huttinger Germany Workshop

POW! was invited to give workshops to the staff of Huttinger, one of the largest exhibit fabrication companies in Europe, located in Nuremberg, Germany. While there, Paul was able to tour Huttinger’s amazing fabrication facilities and conduct hands-on sessions at Huttinger’s headquarters.

Huttinger Shop

Workshop sessions also made use of Huttinger’s shop spaces.

Prototyping

A prototyping session with Huttinger staff.

Nuremberg

The center of historic Nuremberg.

Tunisia-Workshops

Tunisia Workshops

As part of grant programs through the U.S. State Department, Paul was invited twice to Tunisia to work with teachers, scout leaders, and museum professionals from Libya and Tunisia. During the immersive workshops, Paul explored with these adult leaders how museum education techniques could be used to foster a greater appreciation among the region’s young people for their own regional and national cultural heritage.

Kaska

Paul finished his latest Tunisian workshops by learning a little bit of the traditional Libyan Kaska dance.

Salwa Lighthouse

A workshop participant shows part of her “Pop-Up Museum” display featuring the historic Benghazi lighthouse.

Paul Hat

Paul learning about traditional Libyan dress.

Laughing Cups

A fun (if noisy!) project Paul made with workshop participants.

ICOM-ITC Beijing Workshop

Paul was invited to China to be one of the two primary international instructors for workshops at the International Council of Museums – International Training Center (ICOM-ITC) headquartered at the Palace Museum in Beijing. Paul presented interactive sessions on museum exhibit design and development topics to workshop attendees from all across China, as well as such diverse countries as Kenya, Nepal, Korea, and Guatemala.

Workshop Participants

ICOM-ITC participants from Korea, Kenya, Brazil, and Colombia.

Prototyping-Fun

Paul gave workshop participants many hands-on experiences in prototyping and exhibit development.

Paul-Oven-Rack

A quick demonstration on how to develop interactive sound experiences using simple materials.

Paul and Lucimara

Paul with his co-instructor for the ICOM-ITC workshops, Lucimara Latelier from Brazil.

In Harm’s Way

In Harm’s Way exhibition

The In Harm’s Way exhibition (which was organized by Long Island Traditions in collaboration with the Long Island Museum) explores how local residents and government agencies prepare and recover from natural disasters.

Storms and hurricanes have an epic history on Long Island and in Upstate New York, from the September 1938 “Long Island Express” hurricane to the devastating winds and waves of Superstorm Sandy in 2012.

Paul Orselli Workshop (POW!) provided exhibition development, as well as interactive exhibit components and graphic elements for this memorable history exhibition.

Artifacts

Numerous artifacts showing the effects of Long Island storms are featured in the exhibition.

Entry In Harm’s Way Exhibition

The dramatic entry of the In Harm’s Way exhibition shows newsreel footage of recent storms in a windswept beach setting.

Wall Map

A graphical wall map showing the locations of historic hurricanes around Long Island and featuring historic images associated with each storm. POW! developed and installed this feature in collaboration with Kim Wagner Nolan.

Long View

A view into the In Harm’s Way exhibition. Paul Orselli Workshop (POW!) provided exhibition development, as well as interactive exhibit components and graphic elements for this memorable history experience.

Block Table

An interactive block-building table designed and developed by Paul Orselli Workshop (POW!) for the In Harm’s Way exhibition. Here visitors can build their own scale structures designed to resist storm damage.

Bay House Outside

Another view of a classic Long Island Bay House as featured in the exhibition. POW! provided custom graphics in this area of the exhibition.

Bay House Interior

A classic Bay House is featured in the exhibition. POW! provided custom graphics in this area of the exhibition.

What Would

POW! designed and developed these simple interactive exhibit elements for visitors to share their own “storm stories.” Shown here is an abacus-style voting component that allows visitors to vote on which items they would take away from their home before a storm hits.

Feathers to the Stars

Feathers to the Stars Exhibition

“Feathers to the Stars” carries you through the amazing story of how ancient evolution gave birth to animal flight, how humans use imagination and engineering to get airborne, and how outer space will be our next frontier. This breathtaking permanent exhibition at the Frost Museum of Science was designed by Casson Mann.

Paul Orselli Workshop (POW!) was delighted to be the only outside contractor to be part of the core Development Team for this truly outstanding exhibition.

Frost Museum of Science

Feathers to the Stars exhibition at the Frost Museum of Science in Miami. Dinosaurs to birds, flight experimentation and trips to the moon. Interactive science exhibits about the evolution of flight at this amazing gallery.

Yutyrannus Huali Close Up

A close-up view of the feathered dinosaur Yutyrannus huali. This incredible 30-foot model was created by Staab Studios. Photo credit Frost Museum of Science.

Flight Lab

Installation shot of the Feathers to the Stars gallery with the Flight Lab table in foreground before the installation of interactive exhibit elements. Photo credit Frost Museum of Science.

Aircraft and Bird Models

View of Feathers to the Stars showing aircraft and bird models as well as the dynamic projection screen across one whole side of the gallery.
Photo credit ©cassonmann.

Interactive Aircraft Engine

Overhead View Of The Exhibition

An overhead view of the Feathers to the Stars exhibition. Here a mounted bird casts its shadow on a full-scale reproduction of a Lilienthal glider produced by DCM Fabrication. Photo credit ©cassonmann.

A Full View Of Exhibition Gallery

A full view into the exhibition gallery showing aircraft, natural history specimens, and interactive exhibits.
Photo credit ©cassonmann.

Yutyrannus huali

Come face-to-face with a 30-foot dinosaur, the Yutyrannus huali, in Feathers to the Stars.
Photo credit Frost Museum of Science.

Dinosaurs in your Backyard

A Portal to Past Worlds

Step back in time at The Children’s Museum and experience Dinosaurs in your Backyard: A Portal to Past Worlds.

Dinos Sign

One of the dimensional entry signs for the “Dinosaurs in your Backyard” exhibition.

Dino Wall

Interactive Dinosaur Game Show and Designasaurus components from a Children’s Museum dinosaur exhibition.

Paleo Lab

Visitors explore real fossils and dinosaur topics through interactive exhibits and artifacts in the PaleoLab.

Raptor

A full-scale raptor model in “Dinosaurs in your Backyard” exhibition.

Trackway Unit

Large tactile trackway unit with Scutellosaurus model.

Dino Cubes

Visitors can use the Dino Cubes to solve six different ancient dinosaur scenes.

Private: Lenticular Video

Full Exhibit View

View of the exhibit components in the exciting Dinosaurs in your Backyard exhibition.

Tracks Fossils Table

Visitors to the Dinosaurs in your Backyard exhibition can touch actual dinosaur track fossils that are millions of years old!

Stego Puzzle

Large stylized wooden Stegosaurus dinosaur puzzle in the PaleoLab.

Scutelllosaurus Model

A full-scale recreation of the dinosaur Scutellosaurus created by project partner 42|design fab.

Dino Game Show

An interactive Dinosaur Game Show that lets visitors learn the difference between dinosaurs and other ancient animals.

Pop Culture Case

A display case filled with interesting books, toys, and other pop culture items about dinosaurs.

Posters Case

Movie and television items help visitors separate dinosaur fact from fiction.

Apatosaurus Femur Bone

Visitors can measure themselves against a full-scale Apatasaurus femur bone cast in the “Dinosaurs in your Backyard” exhibition.