The Columbus Museum: Orientation & Children’s Galleries
Wall of Faces
At the Columbus Museum, the orientation experience is defined by a series of vertical digital totems that establish a striking and immediate point of entry. Suspended within the lobby, these illuminated columns function as both wayfinding and storytelling devices—introducing visitors to the museum through a dynamic, human-centered lens.
Each totem acts as a living canvas, layering portraits, archival imagery, artwork, and text into a continuously shifting visual field. Together, they create a rhythmic procession that draws visitors inward, bridging the threshold between arrival and exploration. Rather than a single static introduction, the experience unfolds in motion—inviting curiosity, pause, and recognition.
The design language references the museum’s architectural clarity while integrating influences from the surrounding Chattahoochee Valley—its industrial history, natural landscape, and creative community. Bold color treatments and graphic compositions reinterpret the collection with a contemporary sensibility, positioning the museum as both rooted in history and actively evolving.
By centering local voices—artists, makers, and changemakers—the totems transform orientation into encounter. Visitors are not simply introduced to the museum; they are welcomed into a living network of stories that reflect the cultural identity of the region.
Developed as a Motion Designer at Local Projects
Bespoke, Editable Motion Template
To support the evolving needs of the Columbus Museum, I developed a fully editable motion graphics template that enables the internal team to create and update content with ease. Designed within a flexible framework, the system allows users to drag and drop new imagery, adjust color palettes, and edit text fields without requiring advanced technical knowledge.
The template translates a complex visual language into an intuitive toolset—giving the museum the ability to refresh featured artists, rotate artworks, and tailor on-screen content to align with exhibitions, programs, and events in real time. Built-in image treatments and typographic structures ensure that every update maintains visual consistency while still allowing for creative variation.
By shifting control of content from external production to in-house teams, this system transforms motion design into a sustainable, living platform—one that can adapt alongside the museum’s programming and continue to reflect its dynamic community.
Process
This study documents the translation of motion design from screen-based composition to architectural scale. While initial concepts were developed digitally, the final experience required extensive on-site testing to ensure that typography, imagery, and motion behaved appropriately in physical space.
Particular focus was placed on scale relationships. Type sizes were calibrated to be legible and impactful at an average viewing height and distance, while image compositions were adjusted to maintain clarity and presence across tall, vertical displays. Elements that felt balanced on a desktop often required significant refinement when experienced at full height.
Equally critical was the pacing of motion. Transitions and animations were carefully tuned to feel smooth and continuous at large scale, avoiding visual fatigue or abrupt shifts that can become amplified in immersive environments. What reads as subtle on a monitor can feel overwhelming in space; this work bridges that gap through iterative testing and adjustment.
The result is a system that is not only visually cohesive, but physically intuitive—designed to be experienced in motion, at scale, and in relation to the human body.
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