How do you explain history of an event just ten years old to younger children?
Those now in school were not yet born or too young to remember what happened on September 11, 2001. I have not seen recent history books for school students, but it is likely that this event is not covered until the end of the chronology if at all. What can you do to help a generation raised on phrases "9/11," "terrorism," "extremists," and other related phrases? How do you link this event to what has happened since?
In my thesis (on an unrelated topic) I indicated that children are capable of understanding more than they are often given credit for, but it has to be presented in a manor they can understand. For that project I gave mostly books relating to segregation as examples, but I have recently discovered another, aired on a major commercial television station of all places, and mostly devoid of the sensational photographs and voyeurism of the events of the day. Those of us that are my age (and our parents) may remember a fairly regular series on Nickelodeon called Nick News, which at the time covered everything from President Clinton's sex life (in the middle of the Lewinsky affair) to segregation. Because of all the confusion for small children around the 10th anniversary, Nick News has returned (as it does from time to time) with a special half hour broadcast.
Ellerbee and Nick News have developed a program that covers the facts without punditry or sensationalism. It puts into "conversation" (I use quotes because this special does not have the gathering of people face to face that many Nick News episodes did) children today with both experts including the former chief of the 9/11 Commission, a former assistant secretary of DHS, among others including Ari Fleischer. To put the tragedy in ways that kids might understand without showing the horrible pictures of burning towers and people jumping (no mention of the latter is even made) it starts with the experiences of real teenagers, who when they were 7-10 years old, lived or went to school in the shadow of the WTC.
Although it does not show pictures, it has children (scripted or not) ask tough questions, and answered by the experts mentioned before. These questions include the root of terrorism, and the basics of why the U.S. attacked Afghanistan, and what motive that the terrorists had for attacking.
It even covers the invasion of Iraq and the intelligence debacle (please note that I am not commenting on the need for the war, but simply the consensus that the intelligence was wrong). The special even covers the alternative to Osama Bin Laden and terrorists method of regime change, the mostly peaceful revolution in Egypt.
The full special is available free via Nick-on-Demand and also free through I-tunes. Below is a sneak peek of the video, opening with a series of myths about the event. The full special starts with Ellerbee exhorting children to get their parents and siblings and watch together, and then discuss.
The special is important, but it is the discussion afterward, using information and the q&a from the special as a starting point, each child will probably have their own fears and questions about what should we do now?
Sunday, September 11, 2011
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
The “First Person Museum” is an interactive multimedia museum devoted to telling the story of people and their objects. The museum was developed by First Person Arts, a Philadelphia area organization dedicated to converting the “drama” of life into memoir and documentary. Assistance in this project was provided by various community organizations throughout the Philadelphia region. The museum is hosted by the Pained Bride Art Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania’s Old City district. Like most history museums, the First Person Museum focuses on objects of value and importance; but there is an interesting twist. Value and importance are relative terms here; they are specific to the object’s owner. First Person Arts claims that the museum is unique, the first to tell exclusively the stories of everyday people through objects that have special meaning to them.
The First Person Museum has five goals, many of which reflect the mission of First Person Arts. These goals are for visitors to realize that objects are more than commodities, that visitors endow objects with value. The story and the person are the focus of the exhibit (and not the object). First Person Arts wants visitors to connect with and react emotionally to the stories on display. They want visitors to realize that meaning is contingent, based on time, place and experience. The final objective is that visitors will think about their own objects differently. The goals work together to create an active provocative museum experience. However in order to be achieved they require the active participation of the visitor—this is not a place for those looking for a passive museum experience. The goals must be inferred from thinking about the stories.[1]
History in the First Person Museum has an interesting context. The primary mode of history is “personal history,” it is called “story” by First Person Arts. Thematic histories of the objects also appear in the exhibit, in sections entitled “a little bit of history.” Each of these “bits” focuses on theme in the history of the object. For example “Shanise’s rhino” has a caption discussing drug promotions, as that was what the stuffed rhinoceros originally was, while “Kathy’s Pendant” has a caption that discusses the cultural implications of the object. These captions feel a little extraneous at times. First Person Arts has placed the emphasis of the museum on interpreting the story of the owner, leaving history to take a secondary and hard to define role. Although their role is vague—especially in museum’s goals—they add another layer of complexity to the stories and help people understand the greater value of things.
The museum contains about eighteen objects from “everyday people” throughout the Philadelphia metropolitan area. Various community organizations held “story circles” where representatives from First Person Arts recorded the stories of community members. The eighteen or so stories that ultimately were chosen intentionally target a broad range of themes and the authors are from a variety of socio-economic groups. Objects serve as the catalyst for interpretation in this museum. Each tells an important story about the present owner—many (but not all) of the stories involve the connection between the present owner and the object’s previous owner/owners. These stories are told in many different forms of media, some are video (shot by David Kessler), some are audio (recorded by Samara Freemark), some include photographs (shot by J.J. Tiziou) and some are just text panels (written by Diana Marder); all the stories are told as monologues.[2]
The exhibit’s design is interesting. Instead of standard museum cases—which can be very expensive—the exhibit utilizes used furniture. The furniture pieces are arranged in various “domestic vignettes” with the object placed in a location they could appear in the home. For example, “Yari’s baby clothes” are in an open dresser drawer and “Shanise’s rhino sits on a baby rocking chair. This sort of in situ display evokes a sense of domestic tranquility. Objects like Yari’s baby clothes only reinforce the notion of domesticity. However not all the objects reinforce this, some jolt the visitor’s emotions, fulfilling that difficult to achieve goal of the museum. For example, on a coffee table lies an unfinished hand-knit sock owned by Beth. The visitor finds that “Beth’s sock” once belong to Beth’s friend who died of cancer. The sock was given for Beth to finish in memory of her lost friend. Even more “jolting” is “Carla’s Wedding Ring”. At first glance Carla’s wedding ring is unobtrusive, sitting in a jewelry box on an end table. But when the visitor picks up the headphones to listen to Carla, they find that this is more than a simple wedding ring. The story the rings tells is one of abuse and divorce, not a happy marriage that the placement might suggest.
The museum is fairly well designed, but has several issues. The majority of these problems stem from the space of the Painted Bride. The most egregious is that the building is not handicapped accessible. The main exhibit space is also quite small, which means that several objects could not be displayed in the main room. The exhibit continues in a side room without warning or continuity (if designed differently this side room might actually serve as a better home for the exhibit as a whole). Most of the main exhibit space is organized with a central aisle dividing the objects. However midway through the exhibit there is a “living room” that obstructs the central aisle and pushes circulation to a walkway on the side. This would not be extremely problematic, except that there is a split display for Carla’s ring directly at this spot. A table on one side of the walkway has the object, while the interpretive text is on the wall on the other side. Not only is this confusing to understand Carla’s ring, forcing one to step across the walkway to see all the parts of the display, it adds to the congestion at this location.
Upstairs in an underutilized loft space is a television that airs all the video stories that are in the exhibit (also available downstairs) and more importantly postcards to “tell us your story.” Here is where the exhibit tries to share some authority with the visiting public—instead of just the “everyday” people whose objects are on display. The visitor can tack this story to the wall above the desk, and many of these will be published online at the museum’s website. There is one difficulty with the comment cards, next to where the visitor writes their own story is a check-off list of themes it can fit in. Although most object stories could conceivably fit the categories provided (they are extensive), not all could, and it quite literally boxes one into a corner. Object stories can also be entered directly on the museum’s website.
The exhibit has one last issue. The stories can be stereotypical, and the in situ display nor the exhibit interpretation helps—especially if the visitor does not fully understand the exhibit. For example, the story involving “Catalina’s pan” (a type of pan known as a cardero and is common to Hispanic countries) discusses Catalina’s experience as an immigrant. A more dangerous stereotype occurs with “Renee’s boxer shorts”. Renee is an African-American woman whose son was convicted of multiple drug felonies. Her story only serves to augment the stereotype that all African-American men are drug dealers, and aspire to nothing more. Of the issues with the exhibit, this is the most intractable and hardest to compensate for, although it does happen somewhat. Renee’s son eventually “straightens out” and becomes a productive member of society. One can only hope that the visitor does not generalize these stories to an entire socioeconomic group—the museum does not encourage this in any way.
Despite its flaws the First Person Museum is a poignant reminder of the relationships that people have with objects. It is a demonstration of what value can mean in different circumstances to different people. This museum provides a refreshing and interesting twist on the history museum. While it is not for those seeking the jewels of power and fame, or a passive museum experience; those looking for an active experience in an experimental museum dedicated to the people, should attend.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
About Drug Promotions
Shanise’s stuffed rhino originally would have a coat with “Rhinocort” emblazoned on the front. The rhino was a medical promotional toy given free to doctors and hospitals to help sell the drug Rhinocort. This promotional method was voluntarily stopped by the drug industry in 2009, but similar practices remain today.
Written by Steven Greenstein
About Value
Stuffed animals can either be hand-crafted or machine produced. This stuffed rhinoceros was machine produced as free promotional product and therefore has little monetary value. The value of stuffed animals lies in the relationship between the owner and the animal, and is different for every person.
Written by Steven Greenstein
About stuffed animals
Stuffed animals have been machine produced since the 1880’s and can be hand-crafted or machine produced. Shanise’s rhino is machine produced at low cost. Stuffed animals can be used by children and adults, for different purposes. They can be decorative, items of emotional comfort, educational toys, and more!
Written by Steven Greenstein
About Stuffed Animals
Stuffed animals are also known as “plush toys” and have been manufactured since the 1880s. They can be either machine-made or hand sewn. Stuffed animals became popular with the introduction of the “teddy bear” in the early 1900s. Today all sorts of stuffed animals are common in children’s toy collections.
Written by Steven Greenstein
Monday, September 27, 2010
exhibit design
Today I am offering my own hypothetical design plan of the First Person Museum exhibit. It will be based on materials produced by First Person Arts. For a base I have used Alice Parman’s “Exhibit Makeovers: Do-it-yourself Exhibit Planning”, from the AASLH.
Step 1a. Mission
Every object has many stories hiding just below the surface. (Note: History is just another story in this mission)
1b take home ideas
Objects mean different things to different people
Wow! I didn’t know you could learn that from an object.
First Person Arts cares about everyday stories.
1c storyline
The First Person Museum tells the story of the hidden meaning of objects. A seemingly ordinary everyday object can tell powerful stories; about the owner and about history.
Step 2 Organize into thought process.
The objects will be exhibited by category as much as possible. They are organized into three areas. These are clothing, accessories (both jewelry and toys), and kitchen/office. For the clothing, a handmade item is juxtaposed with a machine made one, subconsciously saying that equally important stories can come from machine or hand (the comparison will not be discussed in the exhibit). The theme throughout will be about hiding (objects and stories).
Step 3. Inventory the most important facts
The most important fact is that there is no single “true” story. Equal billing will be given to both the history, and the personal story of an object.
Step 4 Engage and Motivate
Whenever possible interactive questions will be used before the story or history is seen. On the top panel, enough information will be given to speculate the answer to the question. A flip-up panel would then be used, giving the answer at the top, followed by the story.
My other idea is a series of interactive areas. As much as I would like to have the audience interact with the objects on display, I realize that most are not “bullet-proof” and would not hold up. Instead the interactive areas will contain replicas of the items on display, similar items to encourage play, as well as photos and videos of the object.
A third element is a “make your own story”. A visitor could chose to have their own “take home” version of the exhibit. A photo will be taken, the personal story entered on a computer, and during certain hour an expert will be there to provide a research component.
Step 5 “Look and Feel”
This museum will have a playful feel of discovery to it. Each item will be in a place you might conceivably find it outside a museum (a few are a stretch). Many objects are hidden away, and the visitor must “discover” the object before discovering the story.
Step 6
Blueprint is embedded below. Made with floorplanner.
Note: I must give credit where credit is due (although I didn’t realize I was borrowing them until the end). Parts of this exhibit idea are borrowed from elements of “It Sprang From the River: Everyday Items with Maritime Secrets” at the Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Cultural context
Stuffed animal play a large part in American society, and have for at least 100 years. Although they came to the field later than dolls, they play a similar role in childrens’ play and the collectibles market. A stuffed animal can be a friend, a learning tool, a squishy pillow, or just an interesting ornament. A stuffed animal is whatever you make it.
Stuffed animals are everywhere and in every size. The can be tiny (like a beanie baby) or they can huge (like the whole menagerie of larger-than-life animals at the entrance to FAO Schwarz). They range from imaginary animals, like Barney and his friends, to the ever popular teddy bear, and of course a rhinoceros. Almost any animal can become a stuffed animal.
Perhaps the most interesting story with stuffed animals is that of the Teddy Bear. This early phenomenon is one of the few times that a stuffed animal entered the political arena. The teddy bear is named after President Theodore Roosevelt, a popular and charismatic politician from around 1900 with a reputation for being an outdoorsman. While
on a hunting trip, he refused to shoot the bear cub that had been provided for him. This led cartoonist Clifford Berryman to create a cartoon about TR refusing to shoot a baby bear. Capitalizing on the interest in the cartoon, the Michtom family began producing the first “Teddy’s Bears” for sale based on the cute cartoon bear. Across the ocean, and unaware of the craze, the Steiff company was also making its first baby bears, and the style wasn’t selling in Europe. Once they heard of the craze, Steiff began naming its bears accordingly. (For more visit this website about the history of teddy bears.)
Today teddy bears are still the most popular stuffed animal. You can even stuff your own at the Build-a-Bear workshop that is in many shopping malls. Even when stuffed animals were expensive, children still played with them, the example I gave last week of A A. Milne is proof enough. The stories for the Winnie-the-Pooh were based on experiences that Christopher Robin Milne had with this handcrafted bears.
I have already touched on the need for imagination in stuffed animal play, and how TV can encourage this. But not only have stuffed animals spawned TV shows and movies, but these programs have also spawned their own lines of stuffed animals. Every Disney movie and TV show has its own collection of stuffed animal.
Stuffed animals remain popular today, as both a toy and a collectible, some series are collected like posters and classic toys, to be displayed, not played with. A good example of this phenomenon was the Beanie Baby craze in the 1990’s. People would rush the stores looking for the latest Beanie Baby and would often just put it on a shelf. Others collect a bunch of different stuffed animals, almost to excess.
Stuffed Animals have a varied life in popular culture, ranging from political props, to toys, to items on a shelf. One thing is clear, they are an integral part of life for people of all ages.
This week I am changing gears slightly. Last week I discussed the history of both stuffed animals and promotional items, but due to length constraints, I will only be focusing on stuffed animals from here. The reason I have chose this path is that if one hundred years from now an archeologist found Shanise’s stuffed rhino, they would have no idea that it was a promotional item, all the distinguishing markings of that life are gone. However, they would probably be able to determine that it is a stuffed animal.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
The journey of the rhino
Today I am describing the history behind Shanise’s stuffed rhinoceros. Her rhino is around fifteen years old, and lacks any sort of descriptive markings, the name of the manufacturer on the label is also difficult to read. However, thanks to Sara Karpinski and E-Bay I now know the origin of this stuffed animal. It was produced by a company named “It’s All Greek to Me” (IAGTM) as a promotional item for Rhinocort, a brand name for Budinosol, produced by
This sort of object has two uses, one by the company who ordered them, and another by the end user.
Shanise, as the end owner of the object, has a different use for it. It was given to her as an item of emotional comfort in a time of need, something that is a common use for stuffed animals. When I picked up the rhino at First Person Arts, I could feel how such a cuddly toy could be a comfort in a time of need (knowing it was a cheap promotional toy, I expected it not to be that soft and comfy). Children will usually give some sort of imaginarily life force to these animals so that they are comforted while in the hospital, and then often serve as a reminder of how well the child recovered.
Stuffed animals are often used for comfort objects, but most of the time they are given at a time when the child does not need comfort, just something to play with. Since their manufactured inception around 1880 (Steiff corporation claims to have made the first ones then) they have been used as imaginative playthings. The proof of this exists in most children’s past, but also in popular culture. Watch Barney, or read Winnie the Pooh and you can see how advanced stuffed animal play can be.
Although IAGTM no longer makes a stuffed rhino (there is no rhino listing on their website that I could find), they still make many stuffed animals as promotional objects, indicating that the practice of using stuffed animals to promote products remains today. Next week will be more on how stuffed animals have been used in popular culture.
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