The moving, human element to this exhibition lies in the story of the artist, John Payne, who truly is the heart of Dinosaurs in Motion. John was a trained metalsmith with a passion to constantly learn and discover new intricacies about life. Inspired by the universally enchanting effect dinosaurs have on people and the many hours he spent with his children admiring the dinosaurs at Chicago’s Field Museum of Natural History, John devoted his life to creating metal kinetic dinosaurs, noting he “saw an opportunity for teaching art and science.” Through video and interactives, visitors will walk away with Payne’s inspiring message: “If you can dream it, you can do it.”
EXPERT ADVISORS
Dr. Mark Norell, Noted Paleontologist
Senior Paleontology Advisor to "Dinosaurs in Motion"
Dr. John Durant, Director, MIT Museum
Senior STEM Content Advisor to "Dinosaurs in Motion"
Photos
Videos
VR and App Content
Description
Dinosaurs in Motion invites visitors to learn about art, science, and innovation through 14 fully interactive, recycled metal dinosaur sculptures with exposed mechanics inspired by actual fossils. Visitors can push and pull levers, turn wheels connected to pulleys, and use video game controllers to move these kinetic sculptures, all while being taken on a journey exploring the artistic and engineering concepts used to create them. The exhibition leverages the popularity of dinosaurs to inspire guests to test, discover, and create—using experiential learning to teach the STEAM concepts of simple machines, metalworking, puppetry, biomechanics, robotics, natural science, and more.
Collections
Sculptures
General Information
Created In
2014
Available Package Options
Turnkey
More Details About Technical Requirements
MINIMUM CEILING HEIGHT:
14 ft / 4.25 m (Most sculptures are 12 ft/3.6 m or less)
Languages
English
Venues
Past and Future Venues
Selected past venues:
2021- Memphis Pink Palace Museums, TN, USA
2019 - Lawrence Hall of Science, Berkeley, CA, USA
2019 - Reading Public Museum, Reading, PA, USA
2018 - McWane Science Center, Birmingham, AL, USA
2017 - Museum of Science and History, Jacksonville, FL, USA
2016 - MOSI, Tampa, FL, USA
2015/2016 - Arizona Science Center, Phoenix, AZ, USA
Extra Info
Highlights
Curatorial excellence
Interactivity
Highlights Details
Unique sculptures created by a unique artist, John Payne.
