Minnesota's US$79.2m Bell Museum redevelopment to open this month
POSTED 03 Jul 2018 . BY Megan Whitby
The Bell was previously known as the James Ford Bell Museum of Natural History Credit: Courtesy of the Bell Museum and University of Minnesota
Minnesota’s new Bell Museum is set to reopen its doors to the public following a landmark US$79.2m (€68.2m, £60.4m) renovation.
The Bell, previously known as the James Ford Bell Museum of Natural History, has been Minnesota’s official nature museum since 1872.
According to the museum's science director, George Weiblen the Bell was aiming to transform how people experience museums.
"Museums used to put nature in a box but instead this museum immerses the visitor in nature," he said, speaking to The Star Tribune.
An exciting product of the refurbishment is a new state-of-the-art planetarium, which will be the first of its kind in North America. Designed to be a seamless experience, the planetarium will immerse visitors, with graphics ranging from the depths of the cosmos to the inner workings of the human brain.
The museum will additionally feature updated exhibit galleries, with a range of dioramas depicting full-scale natural scenes varying from mammoths and wolves to polar bears.
Curators have also developed the ‘Touch & See Lab’ – a space where all ages can actively learn through observation and sensory engagement with a range of objects, including some small live animals.
Having undergone a 30 per cent increase in size since the renovation, the museum has expanded into its outdoor areas. Called the "Learning Landscape", a second-floor green roof and observation deck is open to the public, while the ground floor also features sustainable landscaping with native plants, a geology exploration area, and a solar station.
The Minnesota Legislature has provided US$51.5m (€44.3m, £39.3m) towards the US$64.2m (€55.1m, £48.8m) construction and landscaping costs, with a further US$6.7m (€5.8m, £5.1m) contributed by the university and US$6m (€5.2m, £4.6m) coming from private donations.
The museum also requested a further US$15m (€12.9m, £11.4m) for programme support, future endowment, technology upgrades, a 1,500sq ft (139sq m) expansion for temporary exhibition galleries and outdoor learning centres.
Based on the campus of the University of Minnesota, the museum has been closed since January 2017 and hopes to triple its annual visitor intake following the refurbishment. Local architects Perkins+Will designed the museum, while Minneapolis contractors McGough were in charge of construction.
The Bell Museum and its designers hope that the development will "bring together science, art, and the environment with a unique Minnesota perspective".
Designed to be a seamless experience, the planetarium will immerse visitors with graphics depicting the cosmos Credit: Courtesy of the Bell Museum and University of Minnesota
The museum has undergone a 30 per cent increase in size since the renovation Credit: Courtesy of the Bell Museum and University of Minnesota
Curators have also developed the "Touch & See Lab" Credit: Courtesy of the Bell Museum and University of Minnesota
The museum will additionally feature updated exhibit galleries with a range of dioramas Credit: Courtesy of the Bell Museum and University of Minnesota
OMA has completed a major transformation of New York's New Museum, creating a larger
cultural campus that combines expanded exhibition spaces with learning, performance,
hospitality and public programming.
A US$50 million (£44.2 million, €51.2 million) transformation of Chicago's historic McCormick
Mansion has created a new destination that combines live magic, immersive theatre, dining and
private membership under one roof.
The Montana Historical Society has officially celebrated the opening of its new Montana
Heritage
Center, a US$107 million (£79 million, €92 million) destination that combines immersive
storytelling with cutting-edge audiovisual technology to bring the sta
Minnesota's US$79.2m Bell Museum redevelopment to open this month
POSTED 03 Jul 2018 . BY Megan Whitby
The Bell was previously known as the James Ford Bell Museum of Natural History Credit: Courtesy of the Bell Museum and University of Minnesota
Minnesota’s new Bell Museum is set to reopen its doors to the public following a landmark US$79.2m (€68.2m, £60.4m) renovation.
The Bell, previously known as the James Ford Bell Museum of Natural History, has been Minnesota’s official nature museum since 1872.
According to the museum's science director, George Weiblen the Bell was aiming to transform how people experience museums.
"Museums used to put nature in a box but instead this museum immerses the visitor in nature," he said, speaking to The Star Tribune.
An exciting product of the refurbishment is a new state-of-the-art planetarium, which will be the first of its kind in North America. Designed to be a seamless experience, the planetarium will immerse visitors, with graphics ranging from the depths of the cosmos to the inner workings of the human brain.
The museum will additionally feature updated exhibit galleries, with a range of dioramas depicting full-scale natural scenes varying from mammoths and wolves to polar bears.
Curators have also developed the ‘Touch & See Lab’ – a space where all ages can actively learn through observation and sensory engagement with a range of objects, including some small live animals.
Having undergone a 30 per cent increase in size since the renovation, the museum has expanded into its outdoor areas. Called the "Learning Landscape", a second-floor green roof and observation deck is open to the public, while the ground floor also features sustainable landscaping with native plants, a geology exploration area, and a solar station.
The Minnesota Legislature has provided US$51.5m (€44.3m, £39.3m) towards the US$64.2m (€55.1m, £48.8m) construction and landscaping costs, with a further US$6.7m (€5.8m, £5.1m) contributed by the university and US$6m (€5.2m, £4.6m) coming from private donations.
The museum also requested a further US$15m (€12.9m, £11.4m) for programme support, future endowment, technology upgrades, a 1,500sq ft (139sq m) expansion for temporary exhibition galleries and outdoor learning centres.
Based on the campus of the University of Minnesota, the museum has been closed since January 2017 and hopes to triple its annual visitor intake following the refurbishment. Local architects Perkins+Will designed the museum, while Minneapolis contractors McGough were in charge of construction.
The Bell Museum and its designers hope that the development will "bring together science, art, and the environment with a unique Minnesota perspective".
Designed to be a seamless experience, the planetarium will immerse visitors with graphics depicting the cosmos Credit: Courtesy of the Bell Museum and University of Minnesota
The museum has undergone a 30 per cent increase in size since the renovation Credit: Courtesy of the Bell Museum and University of Minnesota
Curators have also developed the "Touch & See Lab" Credit: Courtesy of the Bell Museum and University of Minnesota
The museum will additionally feature updated exhibit galleries with a range of dioramas Credit: Courtesy of the Bell Museum and University of Minnesota
OMA has completed a major transformation of New York's New Museum, creating a larger
cultural campus that combines expanded exhibition spaces with learning, performance,
hospitality and public programming.
A US$50 million (£44.2 million, €51.2 million) transformation of Chicago's historic McCormick
Mansion has created a new destination that combines live magic, immersive theatre, dining and
private membership under one roof.
The Montana Historical Society has officially celebrated the opening of its new Montana
Heritage
Center, a US$107 million (£79 million, €92 million) destination that combines immersive
storytelling with cutting-edge audiovisual technology to bring the sta
San Antonio Zoo has reported a US$283 million economic impact for 2025, following a decade-
long transformation programme that has seen almost US$200 million invested into the Texas
attraction.
Plans for the AU$180 million redevelopment of Reef HQ Aquarium in Townsville, Australia, are
progressing, with the project set to transform the attraction into a global centre for reef
education and conservation.
