Proposal 1 KC, ZH, GR

FIELD MUSEUM PROJECT SUMMARY (Natural History in Public) Proposal 1 Name of Project Members Kaycee Conaway, Guillermo Rodriguez, Zach Hutchinson Unifying Biological Concept /Theme – What is the biological concept around which you will organize your wunderkammer? Discuss a little bit how you plan to use the cocept to connect and synthezie objects and aspects of the museum in an interesting, novel, informative, and potentially eye-opening way for visitors? As of now, we are interested in the animals with horns and antlers. We want to explore how they are organized throughout the museum, and how guiding a visitor on a path that covers them would affect their view of the museum and the animals in general. We want to guide the viewer with an audio tour that is comical as well as informative. Rationale for this Concept /Theme – Why ar you interested in this theme? Why is this a meaningful natural history supplement to a museum experience? What will a mseum goer learn / experience / think about that they wouldn’t otherwise? (100-200 words) When exploring a collection as vast as that of the Field Museum, it is easy for a visitor to be overwhelmed by the many rooms and exhibits. Where does one begin? How do they move throughout? Where do they end up? And what catches their eye the most? As I have learned through previous projects, it is best to use a somewhat “simple” subject as the stepping-stone to explore a place like this. Antlers and horned animals are fascinating creatures simply based on their internal anatomy, and how these animals have evolved to use them as weapons and to attract mates. For humans, horned and antlered animals are majestic animals that are traditionally seen as trophies of hunting trips. Knowing this, does the Field Museum position them in such a way that attracts a viewer based on the “majesty/power/symbolism” of the animal? Or do they still attempt to make them seem naturalistic, and in a position that would typically be seen in the wild. How important is it to the Field Museum that they appeal to people’s material side? Media format of the project – What are the components in terms of text, diagrams, audio, video, etc that you will likely use and why? How will this be accessible to the general public. Audio with map guiding the visitor on a specific path that goes by highlighted animals. Possible, specific items or components to include in your wunderkammer (so far) As of now, we do not really have animals picked out, but goats will definitely be included.