CHALLENGE
Transforming a venerable institution with over a century of protection for its collections is no simple challenge. The NewYork Historical Society has embraced change - and technology – to transform its museum and library into an open engaging space. Architectural changes eliminated its former vault-like appearance. Inside, fun interactive multimedia installations and large-scale immersive videos let adults and children explore the city’s history in exciting new ways.
Electrosonic worked with Donna Lawrence Productions to create attractions that would tell the story and enliven the space. They wanted immediate impact with a ‘living painting’ — a motion sensitive panel that reacts to visitors’ movements to pull down a statue. In ‘New York Rising’ the designers wanted touchscreens that would rotate to access layers of information on computer generated images of artifacts. Images for ‘New York Story’ were to be presented on moving panels that drop into a visual space before revealing a 73-feet wide panoramic screen.
