Designing with Animals, with Jacqueline Bershad

Making the Museum

How would you design an exhibit — if an animal’s life depended on it?

What is the number one reason people come to the National Aquarium? When should you take ego out of design? What is a “machine for living”? Which is right: “know-feel-do” or “feel-know-do”? (Hint: might not be the first one.) Why would an aquarium visitor want to hear from the people who take care of the animals? What happens when you float an entire Chesapeake wetland on top of the ocean, in the middle of Baltimore Harbor? How have kitchens and exhibits had a similar evolution?

Jacqueline Bershad, Vice President of Planning & Design at the National Aquarium, joins MtM host Jonathan Alger (Managing Partner, C&G Partners) to discuss “Designing with Animals.”

Along the way: plankton, anemones, turtles, ducks, night herons, sloths, and rockwork sculpting geniuses.

Talking Points:

1. Architecture with a Small “a"
2. Embracing Unlearning
3. When Your Clients Can’t Speak for Themselves
4. Behind the Scenes IS the Scene
5. Passionate People and Pragmatic Problems
6. Vision with a Big “V”

How to Listen:

Making the Museum: https://www.makingthemuseum.com/podcast

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/making-the-museum/id1674901311

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6oP4QJR7yxv7Rs7VqIpI1G

Everywhere: https://makingthemuseum.transistor.fm/

Guest Bio:

Jacqueline Bershad, Vice President of Planning & Design at the National Aquarium, is a licensed, LEED certified architect with 25 years of experience in the design of museums, exhibit experiences, zoos and aquaria. Her team is responsible for all capital improvement projects, experiential design, exhibit fabrication and operations. She represents the Aquarium at national conferences including AAM, MAAM, AZA and ASLA; has published on museum experience in national outlets; and was appointed by the Mayor to serve on Baltimore’s Public Art Commission. Jacqueline holds a Master’s in Architecture from North Carolina State University, Master’s of Science in Architecture from the University of North Carolina with a specialty in the design of public space, and a Bachelor’s in History from Wesleyan University.

About MtM:

Making the Museum is hosted (podcast) and written (newsletter) by Jonathan Alger. This podcast is a project of C&G Partners | Design for Culture. Learn about the firm's creative work at: https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Links for This Episode:

[email protected]

Jacqueline on LinkedIn

National Aquarium - Harbor Wetland

Baltimore Floats an Artificial Wetland in Pursuit of a Cleaner Harbor - Bloomberg

National Weather Desk Harbor Wetland

National Aquarium Strategic Master Plan – Studio Gang

Harbor Wetland — Ayers Saint Gross

Urban Aquatic Health: Integrating New Technologies and Resiliency into Floating Wetlands. | 2018 ASLA Professional Awards

Evolutionary Thinking in Habitats® - CLR Design

Links for MtM, the Podcast:

https://www.makingthemuseum.com/contact
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jonathanalger
[email protected]
https://www.cgpartnersllc.com

Discover Making the Museum, the Newsletter:

Liked the show? You might enjoy the newsletter. Making the Museum is also a free weekly professional development email for exhibition practitioners, museum leaders, and visitor experience professionals.

(And newsletter subscribers are the first to hear about new episodes of this podcast.)

Join hundreds of your peers with a one-minute read, three times a week. Invest in your career with a diverse, regular feed of planning and design insights, practical tips and tested strategies — including thought-provoking approaches to technology, experience design, audience, budgeting, content, and project management.

Subscribe here (and unsubscribe at any time):

https://www.makingthemuseum.com