The document discusses how museum and gallery design can optimize visitor experiences by incorporating elements that reflect the savannah environment where humans evolved. It highlights the importance of natural light, visual access, and complexity in these spaces to enhance health, performance, and learning outcomes. The author emphasizes that building and exhibition design should be informed by scientific evidence to meet organizational missions more effectively.

1. Grazing through the savannah Designing for optimal visitor experiences in Australian museums and galleries: what we can learn from Evolutionary Biology Gillian Savage 2006

2. Museums: high expectations, high performance Custodians of identity, heritage and culture Learning outcomes Important values (Plants=Life) Important knowledge Living up to expectations and going beyond the basics depends on the foundation of excellent building design

3. Visitors are humans Human capabilities evolved in specific environments Our health, performance and well-being are optimal when we are operating in the environment we evolved in

4. Performance indicators Health Studies show that people recover faster from operations in settings with natural light and nature views Education Studies show that students perform better on standard tests and have better attendance rates in classrooms with natural light and external views Workpace Measurably better productivity in settings with natural light and nature views

5. Savannah learning Strong links between natural settings and Cognitive performance – attentional tasks Mood motivation social functioning Browsing :: Curious :: Enquiring :: Choosing :: Grazing Alice Isen

6. Environmental biology Mountain :: Desert :: Cave :: Forest :: Coast Savannah But we thrive in environments that have characteristics of the savannahs that human life evolved in. We can survive in a wide range of environments Stephen Boyd

7. Savannah

8. 9 hallmarks of savannah buildings Balance between visual access and visual enclosure Visual perspectives – horizontal rather than vertical Long sight lines Presence of tree-like forms (especially overhead canopy) Multiple retreats Daylight Moderate levels of patterned complexity Movement – flicker, light changes, flying, waving Low background noise

9. 1. Visual access – balance access and enclosure Art Gallery of NSW – enclosed spaces and view to places beyond

10. 2. Horizontal rather than vertical Art Gallery of NSW foyer – strong horizontal planes

11. Vertical = challenge Guggenheim Bilbao “ The atrium, a jewel of modern architecture, has hosted official events in need of dramatic scenery, such as presentations, catwalk shows, prize-giving events, lunches, dinners and cocktail parties.”

12. 3. Long sight lines Art Gallery of NSW

13. Long sight lines Redcliffe Museum

14. Limited sight lines National Museum of Australia

15. 4. Overhead canopy Melbourne Museum

16. 5. Multiple retreats Melbourne Museum

17. Multiple retreats National Film and Sound Archive of Australia

18. 6. Natural light National Museum of Australia

19. It’s night time National Museum of Australia

20. 7. Patterned complexity National Museum of Australia

21. Patterned complexity Museum of Tropical Queensland This open atrium has strong patterns

22. 8. Movement National Library of Australia People provide movement

23. Static Old Parliament House Touch screen brings some activity to this heritage space

24. Movement Old Parliament House Enactments bring activity to this heritage space

25. 9. Not too noisy Easy to hear normal speech Old Parliament House

26. Not the savannah – ‘toxic’ building checklist monumental hard surfaces dark enclosed tall and narrow disordered bland, institutional, overly ordered noisy Burrow, rabbit warren, maze, stark, empty, barren, repetitive, off-key, unpredictable, confusing, cramped, too large

27. Not in Kansas Guggenheim Bilbao The vertical scale and hard surfaces create a challenging entry

28. Where are we going? National Museum of Australia

29. Coloured cave Melbourne Aquarium

30. Kids storytelling cave National Museum of Australia

31. Optimum environments Building and exhibition design based on available evidence from the biological and social sciences can enhance visitor experience and meet organisational missions more effectively. Imperative that briefs for new buildings and exhibition spaces are informed by existing scientific evidence about features that underpin effective functioning.

32. Savannah

33. Contact Gillian Savage Environmetrics Pty Limited. Locked Bag 2116 North Sydney 2059 Australia Tel 61 2 9954 0455 www.environmetrics.com.au