Exhibit Labels

Why are labels important? Labels are Informative: Labels should provide visitors with the context necessary to understand an object. Labels are Interpretive: Labels say more than what something is--they say what something means. Labels are Narrative: Labels connect objects in the exhibition, putting them in conversation to tell a central story.

Good labels... connect an object with the bigger story are clear, crisp, and easy to read make visitors feel connected to the objects make visitors want to learn more have a clear purpose or objective point visitors to themes or patterns to look for as they move through the exhibit begin with the concrete/specific, and move to the abstract/general provide researched context visitors may not know

Good labels... help visitors come to their own conclusions, by providing multiple (even conflicting) meanings/interpretations/perspectives include a meaningful title and crisp ending use questions, catchy writing, etc, sparingly answer the question, So what? have a mission to explain, guide, question, inform, or invite participation (not just list facts) don't just instruct--they provoke (Serrell 10) are meaningful and memorable

Bad Labels... over-generalize based on a single object are wordy, with long sentences use vocabulary that the audience may not understand assume what visitors will or will not know may be preachy, pedantic, simplistic, or condescending (Serrell 83) use metaphor, alliteration, first-person, exclamation points, puns, or humor include quotes as "filler" make value judgments about objects or visitors

Label Checklist concrete identification of what the object is abstract discussion of what the object means threads of connection to the larger narrative (the "big idea" of what the exhibit is about) donor information In our case, we'll also have translations of your labels into Spanish, so our labels are bilingual

Who is the Audience? Consider the audience: o age o demographics o education o occasion of exhibit o personal connections Note: if audiences feel bored, overwhelmed, confused, or stupid, they are unlikely to value the exhibit or return

What are the main types of labels? Introductory labels: big-picture overview Section/Group labels: a group of objects Caption/Object labels: a specific object (Serrell 18)

How much detail should I include? People spend about 45 min in an exhibit (Serrell, 33) o introductory text : words o group labels : words o object labels : words Don't expect visitors to read all label texts or to read them "in order." Include enough information to make each label stand alone, but not so much that they are redundant.

What does a label look like? Labels can be more than a paragraph of words: o images/illustrations o quotations o questions o bullet points

Synonyms orientation introductory caption wall text case label free-standing chat panels tombstone labels legends (See Serrell p. 21)

Recommended Resources Serrell, Beverley. Exhibit Labels: An Interpretive Approach. Altamira Press: Walnut Creek, London, and New Delhi, Black, Graham. The Engaging Museum: Developing Museums for Visitor Involvement. Routledge: London and New York, 2005.