Bringing the Outside In MCM will build a new exhibit opening summer 2024
What do bears, burr oaks, and bugs have in common? A new home on the second floor of MCM! Coming in spring 2024, visitors will enjoy a new exhibit (name to be determined). The museum’s in-house exhibits team will transform the 2,000-square-foot space at the Capitol Square point into an interactive nature experience, indoors. Grounded in the developmental framework developed by Caretakers of Wonder (see page 12 for more information), the new exhibit will encourage kids to show kindness to all living beings—to animals, to plants, to themselves, and to each other. The new exhibit combines many of the things MCM does best (like supporting open-ended play) in an immersive environment mimicking the outdoors. As children traverse the landscapes and explore how all living things are interconnected, over 40 interactive components will engage them in enriching tactile and sensory activities. In line with the museum’s longtime commitment to the health and well-being of visitors, as much of the exhibit as possible will be created using natural and sustainable materials.
What do bears, burr oaks, and bugs have in common? A new home on the second floor of MCM! With visual center points like the sun and seamless transitions across the four seasons, the new exhibit offers four distinct and intertwined types of Wisconsin ecosystems: forest, woodland stream, marshland, and oak savannah.
As with other MCM exhibits, local artists will contribute their own creative touches, including photographer Tom Jones, muralist Angelica Contreras, illustrator Duachaka Her, and woodcarver Djam Vivie. They will each create a new work that is inspired by the exhibit’s theme. We sure are busy beavers around here! We’re grateful to our confirmed supporters as we continue to raise funds to bring this effervescent exhibit to life. Keep an eye out for more information in the coming months.
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