Newseum: 9/11 Gallery: Reflections

After visiting the Newseum, there is one exhibit that stands out in my mind. That is the 9/11 Gallery. The event itself really touches home with me because I am from New York and when it happened I was so close that I saw the actual smoke. I had friends who had family members escape and then those that were not so lucky. It is interesting to me to see the different perspectives of journalists looking for a headline. Having been personally attached to the attacks, I thought it was amazing to read the front pages of papers across the country. It is set up so that the light shines as spotlights on each of the pages. It was also interesting to see the video about those who covered the tragic day. It is hard to say how one should go about setting up an exhibit on something as horrible as the attacks that really shows the people’s reactions. I think that the Newseum exhibit did a wonderful job at captivating the audience and only portraying front page news, or initial reactions to the attacks. It was a challenge to deal with the attacks living so close to them as a part of a public school or even in a household. I can only imagine the difficulties that the journalists had when attempting to write something effective, yet accurate on the attacks without stirring up too much emotion within each of them. Just the different perspectives really got me to stand there and to look at each page for a few minutes each. As I reflected on the day of 9/11/2001, I was able to bring myself back to exactly where I was and what I was doing when I found out about the attacks. Visually, it is simple but it is definitely effective. This exhibit sufficiently brought out my emotions and my feelings.

Analysis of Aspect of National Museum of Natural History

The exhibit of the Hope Diamond at the Museum of Natural History really caught my attention.  I noticed that there were not many other pieces displayed in the room.  The other pieces were much bigger and kind of set off into the corners.  I thought that this kind of took away some of the importance of them.  When entering the room, from either entrance, it was clear what the main exhibit was.  The diamond was encased in a glass box with a rotating stand.  As soon as I entered the room, there was a large sign displaying an introduction to the story of the Hope Diamond.  It was intriguing and in effect caused me to read on to find out more about this gem. 

The placing of the piece was important and it really sent out the message that it was the main attraction.  It had a historic storyline that was really interesting to follow.  It brought up more questions in my head and made me stop and look at just that one thing.  I also noticed that people love stories.  From the time we are children during story hour to entering the adult world.  Stories are something we, as humans, can relate to.  It humanizes objects and makes them come alive.