Museum sets up its first design framework

The Natural History Museum has unveiled its first design roster, a list of 18 consultancies which will run for two years.

Ralph Appelbaum Associates is the first design group to benefit from the roster. The consultancy has been commissioned to design a forthcoming exhibition on dinosaur diets, scheduled to open next summer.

The roster is divided into three camps and comprises 12 design consultancies, three interactive exhibition specialists and three graphics groups. Violet Mareck, programme manager at the Natural History Museum, has been overseeing its implementation (DW 5 May).

‘Although there is no guarantee, the successful companies can expect to be approached by the museum at any time during the two-year framework period and asked to provide design services,’ explains Mareck.

The roster provides a system that will enable the museum to easily access exhibition-related design services; previously, pitches were run on a project-by-project basis.

Mareck says that the roster framework reduces the paperwork involved in constantly carrying out tendering.

NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM DESIGN ROSTER

Design consultancies

At Large, Casson Mann, Easy Tiger Creative, Furneaux Stewart, H Studio, Land Design Studio, Met Studio Design, Opera ontwerpers, Pentagram, Ralph Applebaum Associates, Real Studios, Spread

Interactive exhibition designers

Kiss the Frog, Newangle, Glassborow Associates

Graphic design groups

Perks Willis Design, Rose-Innes Associates, Raw Nerve