Ohio is one of a handful of U.S. states whose legislative statehouse building contains a museum dedicated to the examination and preservation of the state’s civic life and accomplishments. In 2018, Roto was chosen to design and build a major new exhibit to display and interpret the authentic 1802 and 1851 Constitutions.
Highlights
- Complete exhibit and interior design
- Content research and interpretive development
- Custom high-security archival display vaults
- Unique interactive texture mapping-installations
Error: The Video embed should be a valid Youtube/Vimeo url (including protocol https://...)
Rather than create an exhibition solely about the formation and ratification of the Ohio Constitutions as historical documents, Roto partnered with political scientists, civics educators, legislators and other public officials to help visitors understand the contemporary meaning and values embodied in these foundational governing documents.
For the centerpiece of the exhibit, Roto designed, engineered and built
a pair of custom cases serving as both displays for rotating document pages and
as conditioned storage for the complete archival collection. These magnificent
cases feature hand-crafted solid walnut cladding around an airtight aluminum
interior container, hidden security locks, and case lighting activated by
visitor viewing to cut down on lighting damage to these 200 year old archives.
Flanking these precision display vaults are two unique interactive installations allowing visitors to contemplate the meaning of the Rights and Responsibilities invoked in the Constitution’s core articles. Visitors engage with the interactive elements much like citizens exercising their democratic duties, and in so doing leave their impact for visitors who follow.
“Roto brings a unique skill combination that is hard to find. They excel at the creative, design & technical aspects of developing an exhibit and also possess an unappreciated capacity to listen. Roto went out of their way to understand exactly what we were looking for.”
- Charley Moses, Chair of the Capitol Square Foundation
