Design Museum Gent Visit

So in our final few weeks in Gent we decided as a group that Ciara, Jorge and myself would visit the Design Museum together. We didn't really know what to expect before we went to the Museum so it was a new experience for us all and we were really looking forward to it. When we got to the museum there were no guides for us in English so this made it a little harder to understand everything but it did not stop us from enjoying it. 

The first room that we entered had a mixture of new and old furniture in it. My favourite piece from it was the table which was made form bright coloured books.

The next part of the Museum that we visited was a corridor leading up to one of the exhibitions. On this corridor there were about 8 boxes on the wall and if you looked carefully into each of them you could see different parts of which looked to me like a Dyson product just by the design and shape of the parts I could tell it was a Dyson. And I was right by guessing this as they were the lead up to the James Dyson Exhibition of the Museum. 

This is what could be seen through the hole

The boxes can be seen on the right side here

At the end of the corridor we then entered the part of the museum which was dedicated to James Dyson and his wonderful designs. James Dyson is a British Inventor, Industrial Designer and the most famously known inventor of the Duel Cyclone first bag less Vacuum Cleaner.

The exhibition on show explores how Dyson and his employees develop new technology and machines and what approach and methods they use when designing. 
We were able to see many of the Dyson products that are already in use today's modern world. Being able to see this exhibition was very beneficial to me as I am studying back in Ireland to be a Teacher of Technology and Design. Being able to see how the people who design the Dyson products go through the same design process as I do in University when making a product was really interesting and also inspiring as I feel that this experience has enabled me to come up with many new ideas through seeing the sketches and models that the Dyson products go through before becoming a famous piece of equipment. I have a few pictures from my University product last year which i feel reflect and cooperate well with the Dyson Process and I will let you have a look to see for yourself.

Dyson Model and Final Piece                                                 My Model and Final Piece 

  

This is a video of a Dyson product being tested in the exhibition. 

We then moved on to the part of the Museum which was called brilliant by design. It was an exhibition of Czech Glass and Porcelain, there were many beautiful pieces of glassware and porcelain on show here and they were really lovely to see. Although I could see this part of the Museum being a hazard with younger children as they would love to touch all the exquisite pieces. 

The next part of the Museum we visited was called the 'Old Museum' it contained collections mainly from 17th and 18th Century Furnishings. We also got to see collections containing different types of Art. There were Art Nouvea and also Art Deco throughout the Museum. These types of Art collections particularly caught my eye. These collections are from the 70's and 80's and they are from a mixture of Belgian and Italian Designers. There were a lot of chairs and tables in these collections and all of these were very interesting and different. 

These are some pieces which I really liked in the Museum. 

I have noticed in the museum from the first room I entered that there are miniature playmobil characters placed on a lot of the pieces in the collections throughout the museum. I found this a very interesting thing to have in a Museum and i feel that this could be used in coordination with an activity for children. Children will find these straightaway i feel even before an adult so they are placed with a purpose in the Museum to entertain the children. Here is a few pictures with some characters journeys. 

When I first entered the Museum I didn't think that children would be able to learn and gain as much from this Museum as adults but after my visit I feel there are many opportunities in this great museum to do so. 

 An amazing piece just as we were leaving the Museum! 

An Activity for Primary School Children

When we entered the museum we asked the lady at reception for any information on activities we could carry out with young people but she told us that there was none available in English and that all the information was online. So i had a look online but i was still unable to find anything that was of great use for myself so i decided to create my own activity based on the knowledge that i have learned so far in this Art Course. 

I feel if i were to bring a class to this Museum I would visit it myself first to familarise myself with it and to ensure that I will know exactly what I am showing the children around. 

I would have booklets printed out for the children to follow and also for them to fill in throughout their journey through the museum. 

The booklets would begin with instructions to the Activity that will be completed by the end of the trip. 

Firstly the children will be asked as they go along to pick out 5 different pieces throughout the whole museum that they like the design of, the colours in and also a piece maybe they would like to have this in their house e.g lamp, table, chair or even a dyson hoover.

Then the children will also be advised to look out for the Play Mobil characters in the Museum as at the end they will have to place one like they have seen in their own drawings. 

The children will then get to fill in on the worksheet what their favourite object was, Where they found this object and what type of material the object is made out of. 

The final task on the worksheet would be the the children are required to come up with a variation of their favourite object, and in creating this they will be required to use paints to add in the colours from the collections which they feel are suitable for their object. Using all the information they have gathered in the booklet so far this object could be a lamp, table, chair etc. Then the children will also be required to add in a little playmobil-esq type character to their design this is just a fun way of keeping the theme of the characters from the museum in the children's work.