Museums in New York

Yesterday I visited New York's National Museum of the American Indian, which is also a Smithsonian Institute museum. On entering the building the first thing that strikes you is the Rotunda (and oval room)which has the exhibitions leading off it. You are also welcomed by a flash-based (I think) display letting you know what exhibitions are available and what events are coming up.

The exhibits were very good, and well designed. I especially enjoyed the contemporary 'Off the Wall' exhibition, which had a slick video presentation by Erica Lord. They also had contemplation areas between exhibitions, which is a nice touch.

I also went to the Museum of Jewish Heritage, where the original core exhibition (built 1997) is still very engaging. Though I felt there was a lot to digest, the artifacts are fascinating and the videos give a lot of very interesting oral history.

Today I visited the American Museum of Natural History, which is apparently the world's largest museum of it's kind. There was plenty to see and do there, even though any of the galleries were off-limits. I particularly liked the Hall of Planet Earth, and the Hall of Biodiversity which provided plenty of audio visual things for me to look at - and some effective ways of using touchscreens.