Morris Arboretum

In my world, the city of Philadelphia is getting a lot of flack lately for the way it is portrayed in the biased but fascinating documentary The Art of the Steal. I happen to think Philly is a great city so I jumped at the chance to shed a more flattering light on it when I learned about a design project at the Morris Arboretum of U Penn. The name of the project sums it up perfectly: Out-on-a-Limb. It features an incredible canopy walk that gives visitors a bird’s eye view of the forest. I’ve been to a lot of amazing parks, but never had the luxury to experience it the way a squirrel might! Apparently 41% more people have visited the gardens since it opened last summer, which is remarkable when you think about it. The actual garden didn’t change, just the vantage point from which visitors experienced it. It’s got me thinking about possible applications to museums, how can we take the same old stuff we have on display and give people a new way to experience it?