Particular attention must be paid to the specificity of cultural goods and services which, as vectors of identity, values and meaning, must not be treated as mere commodities or consumer goods.
–UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity
Designing the world’s largest museum, educational, and research complex is, well, complex.
As the Project and Design Manager for Smithsonian Enterprises, my mandate was twofold: to generate revenue, and to further the Smithsonian’s mission of “increasing and diffusing knowledge.” Since each museum partner viewed this mission through a distinct cultural lens, design goals and contextual knowledge varied by project. To develop shared understanding amongst the scholars, designers, engineers, and managers, project teams employed a co-design process that embraced inclusivity in both outcome and process. Together, we created culturally authentic experiences and businesses deemed successful by most measures. Ultimately striving towards cultural sustainability, I now advocate for participatory design methodologies like those I employed at the Smithsonian.
As Project Manager, I led all phases of large-scale capital projects related to Smithsonian shops, restaurants, theaters, and concessions: initial ideation, concept refinement, business planning, feasibility analysis, design development, construction management, and post-mortem analysis/evaluation. Co-designed with architects, designers, engineers, scholars, scientists, administrators, vendors, visitors, and investors both internally and externally to achieve common goals while addressing individual unit concerns and cultural sensitivities.