John Norman, 52, is breathing new life into the traditional idea of museum exhibits. Instead of passive experiences, the traveling exhibits designed by Aurora, Ohio–based Arts & Exhibitions International—like massively popular undertakings for Tut, Titanic, and Cleopatra artifacts—feel more like theatrical event experiences, with careful attention paid to experiential details.
In the late ’90s, Norman worked for a company called Magicworks Entertainment that produced major events and tours, exposing him to the business of entertaining audiences. Around that time—when the movie Titanic was captivating public interest—he saw an exhibit on the ill-fated ship in Florida, noting people lined up around the block to get in. Intrigued, he investigated and learned that 830,000 people over six months had gone to see the exhibit—but noted that the 250 or so artifacts were displayed in a completely straightforward manner with text panels and object labels.
“It was at that time that I realized that the experience could have been so much better if, for instance, instead of having a big graphic of the grand staircase, what would it be like to actually reproduce a grand staircase exactly the way it was? Then the visitors could really feel what it was like to be on this magnificent ship,” he says.
He approached the company that owned the Titanic artifacts with a deal to lease the artifacts for a two-year tour, designing a new exhibit that recreated some of the major elements of the ship, like a first-class hallway, grand staircase, captain’s bridge, and a third-class state room, and included artifacts recovered from those exact areas—“so the storytelling combined with the scenic elements, music, video, sound effects, and even smells helped to create an environment to learn about and appreciate these artifacts,” he says. “The basic philosophy was to create exhibitions that not only educate the visitors but also entertain.”
The unique business model for Arts & Exhibitions International, founded in 2003, includes handling the exhibits’ marketing and promotions, as well as their production, installation, and design.
In 2012, Premier Exhibitions purchased the business, and Norman is now part of the company that owns the Titanic artifacts. “This acquisition will provide an infrastructure that will allow me to organize more content than before and bring it to the marketplace quicker.”
Top 50 Innovative Event Pros 2013: John Norman
The president of Arts & Exhibitions International is turning traditional museum exhibits into theatrical event experiences.
Photo: Courtesy of Arts and Exhibitions International
Photo: RMS Titanic, Inc., a subsidiary of Premier Exhibitions, Inc.