Ralph Appelbaum Associates (RAA), a multidisciplinary firm specialising in the planning and design of museums, exhibits, educational environments, and visitor attractions, is celebrating the opening of MoMI LAB, a new 2,400-square-foot co-creation studio and artist residency space in the Museum of the Moving Image's transformed basement.
Building on the museum’s "Open Worlds" initiative, the LAB is a free, public space designed to bridge the digital divide by providing community access to emerging digital environments.
It serves as a dynamic "living prototype" that will evolve through ongoing community engagement.
MoMI LAB is a 2,400-square-foot space, with areas for visitors, wokshops, community programmes, and a dedicated Artist-in-Residence studioImage credit Thanassi Karageorgiou/MoMI
The primary goal of the LAB is to shift passive media consumers into active creators and critical thinkers by increasing access and fostering digital fluency and literacy.
Furthermore, the museum seeks to create a collaborative community, a "third space" where individuals can work together to solve problems.
Increasing access
The physical layout comprises three zones: an Education Space for visitors of all ages, a multi-use Share Space for workshops and community programmes, and a dedicated Artist-in-Residence studio.
The visitor experience in the Education Space features a two-part activity station. Guests first engage with the "Tinker" side, which offers brief, low-pressure interactions lasting from 30 seconds to two minutes to ignite curiosity. They then move on to the "Deep Learning" side for more extended, immersive engagement.
The curriculum centres on the theme of "Point of View" (POV), examining how human perception is translated into machines via physical and spatial computing, AI, and robotics.
MoMI LAB is designed to give visitors access to emerging technologyImage credit Thanassi Karageorgiou/MoMI
Interactive topics include stereoscopic vision with 3D glasses and Google Cardboard, machine sensing through gyroscopes, creating 3D environments with NeRFs and Gaussian splats, procedural generation inspired by the "Everything" video game, and engaging with custom AI such as the "Dream Recorder," which converts whispered dreams into visual representations.
RAA served as a collaborative design team, working closely with MoMI’s education staff to develop both the physical space and educational interactives.
It crafted the spatial layout, creating a "glass box" environment that reveals technology through an adaptable, extruded T-slot aluminium system commonly used in high-tech labs.
To enhance visual coherence, the team painted the mechanical basement ceiling a "gentle orange," inspired by tech hardware. The brand identity incorporated dot-matrix displays and blinking terminal cursors, mimicking human-computer interaction.
Demystifying tech
"MoMI LAB gave us the opportunity to design a space that shows technology doesn't have to be opaque or intimidating," says Keetra Dixon, creative director and director of creative media at RAA.
"We wanted the space to do what the museum does, which is to demystify how things work. It was an immense pleasure to work hand-in-hand with the MoMI staff, and we look forward to seeing how the LAB evolves."
Aki Carpenter, vice president and chief creative officer at RAA, adds:
“MoMI LAB is designed as a living, exploratory experience where technology becomes more transparent and accessible. The design supports a new kind of civic and creative third space, inviting visitors to move from passive media consumption toward digital fluency and critical engagement with the technologies shaping our world.”
MoMI LAB's design aims to invite critical engagement with the technologies shaping the worldImage credit Thanassi Karageorgiou/MoMI
The lab is launching as a "minimum viable product," relying on rapid iterations rather than extensive prior user testing. This ensures that the community's ongoing interactions will shape future iterations of the lab space, making visitors co-creators of the museum's future.
Backed by more than $5 million in New York State funding, the project marks a major advance for the museum's educational and community offerings.
“The emerging media lab is unlike anywhere else in the world because it is a place where we are shaping the future with the participation of the public," says Aziz Isham, executive director, MoMI.
"These technologies belong to everyone; they should be accessible to everyone. If you’re not getting them at home and you’re not getting them at school… There is a place where you can get exposed to these technologies here at the Museum in Queens.”
RAA also led the exhibition design effort for the newly opened Obama Presidential Center Museum in Chicago’s Jackson Park, in collaboration with the Obama Foundation Museum team and a broad team of creative partners and specialists.
