Peabody Essex Museum

I recently made my first trip to Salem to the Peabody Essex Museum. The first impression I had of PEM is that the building stands out as a museum. The large glass structure gives visitors a view of the huge cathedral ceiling in the lobby. The building also differentiates itself from its neighbors, which are almost all red brick buildings of a similar style. The fact that one can see people inside through the glass, makes the building welcoming to visitors.

In the Art and Nature Center there were several families with children positively engaged with interactive learning experiences. The space was clearly designed with families in mind, while still having interesting artwork on the walls for adults. The Trash Menagerie show exhibits artwork made with recycled materials. Most of the works are sculptures of animals. I really liked the little touches in the exhibit, such as the labels and title text being mounted on corrugated cardboard. The interactives were placed at a child's height, including small touchscreen videos. There were also lots of seats throughout the Center, some at interactive stations and some just to take a break. Most of the seats were plush and comfortable, asking the visitor to stay and learn in the space. There was a large flat screen monitor rotating information on upcoming programs.

On the third floor is the special exhibition space with the show I really wanted to see - The Rare Bird of Fashion: The Irreverent Iris Apfel. There is ample seating in the Iris Apfel exhibit, which was appreciated by the number of older female visitors present. All visitors I witnessed in the galleries seemed to be intrigued by the creativity of Ms. Apfel and pleased with the show. There was a group especially pleased with the video depicting Ms. Apfel speaking about her style and collection. There are also two computers available to play the digital paper dolls interactive that is also available on the PEM website. This is a well-designed game, but due to the older age of many visitors, it did not appear to be popular during my visit. There are kiosks with informational booklets sitting in wooden racks for the visitor to look at while in the gallery for more details on the pieces. These books are especially important for the Iris Apfel exhibit because it is set up to resemble a fashion show, and therefore no labels are posted on the walls or platforms. My favorite room in the exhibit was the winter collection. In this gallery, there were projections of snow falling on opposite walls that gave it a wonderful cozy atmosphere. I think PEM did a really great job of creating a distinct mood and style in each of the galleries.

Design some paper dolls of your own: http://pem.org/sites/iris/.