Design Kickoff Meeting – Putting our assumptions to the test and finding the right voice for the story This is the third article in a series about designing and building the Museum of Internal Auditing in eight months. The previous article explains how and why we developed an Exhibit Plan for the museum. This article is about how we started the design …
Building a Museum in Eight Months
First Meeting – Finding a reason why the world needs this museum When I first got the call from Judy Burke, VP of Governance for the Institute of Internal Auditors, I thought this was going to be a difficult process. She called me to set up a meeting to explore designing and building a museum about Internal Auditing. First, I …
Everyone Will Be a Hero
Summertime is a perfect time to visit a children’s museum. AST Exhibits recently completed designs for new exhibits in the Explorer’s Gallery at the Children’s Museum of the Treasure Coast. You can read more about the designs here: https://www.astexhibits.com/takers-to-givers/. One of the design goals was to make guests feel like they are something special, that they are heroes. We wanted guests …
Takers to Givers
Takers to Givers Shifting Imagery to build community leaders Takers to Givers is the first in a series of articles about the groundbreaking work we are doing for the Children’s Museum of the Treasure Coast. We Started with Pirates When we first talked to the leadership at the Children’s Museum of the Treasure Coast, we knew that we had some …
Backwards History: Leading with the Story to Bring the Holidays to Life
A local museum, Art and History Museums Maitland, recently called us with an interesting project. They had committed to making the theme of their historic property representative of Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” for the holiday season. They needed a material historian who specializes in the Victorian era. More specifically, they needed someone who was familiar with the period between 1844 …
Design Kick-off for Children’s Museum
AST Exhibits of Orlando, Fla., will design two new exhibit areas in the Explorer’s Gallery at the Children’s Museum of the Treasure Coast in Jensen Beach, Fla. “Completing the gallery opens the museum to a whole new group of guests and unlimited possibilities for fun and learning,” said Scott Metelko, President and Founder of AST Exhibits. “The new gallery elements …
Ingenuity & Know-how Trump a Hostile Environment
It is hard to imagine a worse environment for a special piece of original artwork than a restaurant, where it’s exposed to pollutants, harsh light, unstable temperatures and humidity, and even curious fingers. And yet … Art must be seen to be appreciated. Sometimes, that means taking the art to where the audience is. A private collector wrestling with this …
AST Exhibits Creates Western theme for Mennello Museum
The Mennello Museum of American Art in Orlando, Florida, relied on the skill of AST Exhibits when it came time to add additional interest to its galleries. Director Frank Holt wanted to add themed architectural elements to accentuate touring exhibitions that will feature the art of the American West this year. AST Exhibits designed, fabricated and installed five elements to …
South Florida Science Center & Aquarium
[clientplace clientname=”South Florida Science Center & Aquarium” projectplace=”West Palm Beach, FL”]
The South Florida Science Center & Aquarium underwent a massive expansion, renovation and rebranding project in 2013.
Traveling Exhibit of Artwork by Rob Storter
Client: Friends of the Museum of the Everglades
Location: Touring Exhibit
AST Exhibits is in the process of designing a traveling exhibit of Rob Storter’s work and making sure it can safely travel the globe.
Marco Island Historical Museum
[clientplace clientname=”Collier County Museums and Marco Island Historical Society” projectplace=”Marco Island, FL”]
The Marco Island Historical Museum is a brand new facility that opened in June 2010 with a number of temporary exhibits.
Naples Airfield Exhibit
Client: Collier County Museums
Location: Collier County, Florida
The story of the development of the Naples Airport is a very important one to the development of Naples itself.
Naples Depot Museum Phase II
[clientplace clientname=”Collier County Museums” projectplace=”Naples, FL”]
The challenge was to take a 2400 square foot room and use it to tell the story of other modes of transportation than rail in Collier County.
Naples Depot Museum Phase I
Client: Collier County Museums
Location: Naples, FL
When AST became involved with this project in 2007, the Naples Depot was just beginning the process of renovation.
Archbishop John C. Favalora Archive and Museum
Client: St. Thomas University
Location: Miami Gardens Florida
The University needed museum display cases that met with their initial design concept for a new on campus Museum located within their Library facility.
Interpretive Outdoor Signage
Client: Collier County Museums
Location: Collier County, Florida
AST Exhibits designed these outdoor interpretive graphic panels to endure hurricane force winds, torrential rains and the intense South Florida sunshine.
Grove House Sustainability Exhibit
Client: Florida’s Natural Co-Op
Location: Lake Wales, Florida
Florida’s Natural had recently made many environmentally-conscious improvements to their operation and were looking for a way to showcase these improvements in their visitor’s center.
BET Spring Bling
[clientplace clientname=”Black Entertainment Television” projectplace=”Riviera Beach, FL”]
AST Exhibits worked with the production designer to realize the stage, sets, and props.
Howl-O-Scream Outdoor Attractions
Client: Busch Gardens
Location: Tampa, Florida
Howl-O-Scream is a Halloween-themed attraction at Busch Gardens. It is installed in August and September, both very active months of the hurricane season in Florida.
PMO Christmas Show
Client: Purdue Musical Organizations
Location: West Lafayette, IN
The PMO Christmas Show is the only show of its kind in the country in which a brand new production is mounted every year.
Nickelodeon’s My Family’s Got Guts
Client: Five Alts Productions
Location: Universal Studios, Florida
My Family’s Got Guts was a spin-off of the original game show GUTS which was filmed and aired in the early 1990s.
Hard Rock Park Grand Opening Tour
Client: Hard Rock Parks
Location: Myrtle Beach, SC
AST Exhibits co-produced the opening events for the park, which included concerts by The Eagles and The Moody Blues.
2008 HGTV Green Home Giveaway
Client: Convergence, LLC
Location: Hardeeville, SC
Exhibits consisted of custom modular panels that then had graphics and 3-dimensional objects applied to highlight the different green technologies used in the project.
Arthur Live! Tour
Client: Turnstile Presents, inc
Location: US Tour
For this touring production, we built the scenery around a giant story book with which the characters interact throughout the show.
Liquidmetal Golf PGA Booth
Client: LiquidMetal Golf
Location: Orlando, FL
AST designed and built a 70′ X 30′ exhibit for the PGA show in Orlando. The booth featured exhibits that highlighted the Liquidmetal Golf products being offered as well as some of the aerospace and military applications of the underlying technology.
3D Architectural Renderings
Client: Chris Raleigh Design
Location: Maitland, Florida
3D Renderings have been a part of our skill set at AST Exhibits since the beginning.
Chicago Raceway Rendering
Client: International Speedway Corporation
Location: Chicago, IL
AST was engaged by International Speedway Corporation to produce a series of architectural renderings for new tracks being built around the country.
Universal Studios Development
Client: Universal Studios / Idletime Networks
Location: Universal Studios, FL
Idletime Networks and Universal Studios had developed designs for elements of regional theme parks. We were tasked with finding a way to rapidly prototype an entire theme park using the elements previously designed once a potential site and demographic were identified.