A possibly little known fact about IMA Lab is that we also develop applications and websites for other museums. Recently we were approached by the Atlanta History Center to build an interactive war map kiosk for an exhibition entitled “War In Our Backyards.” The Atlanta History Center has gathered an immense amount of data about the civil war battles in the Atlanta area and they wanted to convey this information onto a map so that visitors could see what took place right in their neighborhoods.

Not only did this exhibit involve a series of touch screen kiosks, but also needed to include a large version of the map that would be projected from the ceiling onto a table in the middle of the exhibit. Many ideas had been tossed around for the best way to approach this unique kiosk design. The approach we eventually decided on was to build a single interface that could accommodate both the projection and the touch screen displays. The screen shot below depicts the final interface design.

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Filed under: New Media, Technology

What I would have given for the opportunity to work in an art museum as a teenager—to have had access to such beautiful settings and stimulating interactions. Rather, like a lot of young first time job seekers; I wound up in the slippery kitchen of the fast food industry.

But this blog is not about me. Instead, I’d like to introduce to you the teens of the 2010 IMA Museum Apprentice Program (MAP). The IMA MAP employs high school sophomores and juniors during the spring and summer to explore what’s happening behind the scenes of the IMA, while working on projects alongside Museum staff.

This year, the MAP teens are learning about 100 Acres and planning creative experiences that will encourage Park visitors to engage with nature, art and with one another.

Check back as the MAP teens will be blogging about their experiences with art, nature and other things that catch their interest.

Hello, I’m Jakob, a junior at Herron High School and a member of the IMA Apprenticeship Program. This is my inaugural blog post, the first of what I hope to be many this summer. We’re still in training, but all signs are pointing to this summer being outstanding, and I’m really enjoying the atmosphere of the museum and its staff. I’ve always had fun at the museum, but now that I have the time to really take a look at things around here in detail, I’m finding more and more to admire.

It’s a great place for me considering how often I think about aesthetics anyways (I’m planning on going to art school), and I’m very happy to work at a place where everything I look at, from what’s on the walls to the design of the building and its grounds, is instructive and worth studying.

I’ll leave with an example of what I mean:

Filed under: Education

Acclaimed film director Julie Dash worked with six area high school students over the course of their participation in the IMA’s Museum Apprentice Program to produce short films featured in the exhibition Smuggling Daydreams into Reality: Yesterday, Today and Forever.

The exhibition opened Saturday and runs through January 18, 2010 in the IMA’s Star Studio. I spent my Tuesday lunch in the exhibition. The students’ video works and the film documenting the process with Dash drew me in. I was also tempted to add my own daydream to an IMA Flickr set shown in the exhibition as a slideshow. But my stomach was growling so I’ll have to go back.

I was delighted to sit down with Julie for a quick chat earlier this year.

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Filed under: Art, Education, Exhibitions, Interviews

Open your car glove box, pull out a map of your home state or country and start driving. Do you have any idea what masterpiece you might be on the verge of creating? The map is your canvas, your car works as your brush and the Garmin GPS acts as your eyes.

Using the DHL shipping service, Swedish artist Erik Nordenankar brought this global idea to light by orchestrating a 55-day trip across 63 countries. His Web site explains that a sealed case containing a GPS component was sent with specific instructions for its handlers. Nordenankar claimed he created the “biggest drawing in the world” which is also a self-portrait. I was taken in by the video diary of the process. Read the rest of this entry »

Filed under: Art, Current Events, Musings, Travel