Meeting with GHM staff, volunteers, and people from the community

On Wednesday Sept. 14th we went over to the Greensboro Historical Museum to meet with some of the staff, volunteers, and other people from the community to talk about the lobby space and the museum. Before we headed over to the museum we had a discussion among our group about what kind of questions we needed to ask them to find out more about the museum and what they wanted to see changed about the space. Some of the questions that we came up with to ask the staff of the GHM were:

• What should stay in the lobby space and what can go?
• What are the other uses for the lobby space over the course of the week, month, or year?
• What sort of budget we are dealing with for this project and how that will effect the project?
• What image should be conveyed though the lobby space?
• How does/should the lobby space fit within the image for the museum as a whole?
• What is the current amount of storage space and does there need to be more/less?

Before we presented to them what we had noticed in the space we had each of them come up with at least three things about the lobby that they feel needs improving. The ideas that they came up with were:

• make it look more like a museum
• make sure all of the systems (lighting, signs, electrical, etc.) work together
• making a bridge from the parking lot to the museum to connect the two
• create a more warm, open, and inviting space
• make parking lots more attractive so people are drawn in
• use a way finding technique such as signs so people know where to go within the space
• update things within the space such as flooring, wall coverings, and furniture
• make welcoming feature the first thing you experience when you enter the space without changing the volume of the lobby space
• improving the acoustics of the space to help with the noise
• creating seating within the lobby that invites people to sit down within the space
• possible turning the space outside the lobby into an amphitheater 
• making the space flexible for all of the different events that take place within it
• making an info kiosk in the space
• a way to control the natural light entering the space
• engaging space to make people want to go look at the rest of the museum

After we heard some of their ideas on the lobby space we presented some of the things that we have noticed and discussed about the space. I presented the information that we already knew about the GHM and some of the things we had already completed in the space. These things were looking around the space, taking measurements, drawing up elevations for walls and ceilings, exploring exhibits and discussing them, and then talked about about idea of improving the lobby space in terms of circulation, identity, and unity, which were the three most important things we found that needed improvement. 

Then we talked within our groups at our table about the questions that we had come up with before the meeting. Their answers and ideas were:

• make the staircase grander so that it stands out like it should with its large size
• change wall coverings to something more interesting while still maintaining the integrity of the space
• putting in more modern furniture
• putting in different flooring rather than tile that is there now to help with sound
• strip away some of the traditional things to make the museum more interesting
• want us to come up with conceptual and logical ideas so that there will be a variation to pick from and maybe combined together to be used
• making a method of way finding in the space so people know where to go
• the space is used for: receptions, exhibits, luncheons for the city council, board meetings, and intermission space for shows in the auditorium
• the image they are trying to show is welcoming, museum atmosphere, public place, and show what is happening at the museum with banners
• want museum to embrace the history of Greensboro
• put featured artifacts on display in the lobby to encourage people to want to see more
• fix the slope outside the entrance because it can get slippery in the winter
• having slip resistant flooring so people don't fall and get hurt
• having advertisements for the museum around the city

The people in my group also gave us two other successful places to look at for ideas and inspiration. Those two places were the International Civil Rights Museum and the Metropolitan Museum in New York.

Meeting with these people was very helpful to see what is needed and get some good ideas. I am looking forward to working on this project.