Ideum, an experiential designer of interactive exhibits, has worked with architecture firm Gensler and the newly opened Jackie Robinson Museum in New York City to create an illuminated and detailed scale model of Ebbets Field.
The new museum, which was ten years in the making, celebrates the life of legendary baseball player Jackie Robinson but is also about more than just baseball, aiming to be a “venue for vibrant dialogue on critical social issues and innovative educational programming.”
Gensler provided architecture & interior design, exhibit design and exhibit graphic design services for the project, with Gensler DXD working on digital experience design. Gensler DXD developed the original content for the museum’s cornerstone exhibit, an interactive physical model of Ebbets Field, home of the Brooklyn Dodgers. Ideum was brought in to lend its expertise to the design, fabrication and AV support for the three-dimensional exhibit.
Bringing Ebbets Field to life
The highly detailed model is 1/64 scale (S scale) and has built-in controllable LED lighting throughout, from the Ebbets Field sign to illuminated features such as the bullpens, dugouts, press boxes, and areas in the stands. Content can be projection-mapped onto the field, and there is also an LED tile wall behind the model.
Ideum was responsible for the design and integration of the AV elements, and Gensler DXD created the software program which presents Robinson’s career and his activism. For this project, Ideum introduced one of its latest innovations with the inclusion of two new “Reading Rail” 34-inch 5K displays.
Visitors to the museum can discover several engaging features that are included in the model, from a digital scoreboard designed to replicate Ebbets Field’s original scoreboard to advertising signs that hark back to the team’s heyday. Ideum also designed and produced more than 30,000 3D printed characters so that the stands appear packed with spectators. The company designed, fabricated, and integrated the model at its fabrication studio in Corrales, New Mexico.
A project to be proud of
Rachel Robinson, who recently celebrated her 100th birthday, officially opened the Jackie Robinson Museum on 26 July in a ceremony attended by museum supporters and VIPs, including former Attorney General Eric Holder, Spike Lee, Billie Jean King, and many other celebrities, politicians, and sports personalities. New York Mayor Eric Adams made a speech to celebrate the new museum.
Rachel Robinson is Jackie Robinson’s widow and the founder of the Jackie Robinson Foundation, a not-for-profit organisation that provides educational and leadership opportunities for minority students. She was a major driving force behind the creation of the Jackie Robinson Museum.
“It was an honor and a privilege to be part of this project and we are grateful for the opportunity to contribute to such an important museum, amazingly the only civil rights museum in New York City,” says Jim Spadaccini, founder of Ideum.
The project manager was Zubatkin Owner Representation Inc., and Electrosonic, a leading international audiovisual and technology services company, provided additional AV support.
Earlier this year, Ideum completed a project for the Roswell International UFO Museum and Research Center in Roswell, New Mexico. Here, guests can now enjoy two new theme-park-inspired interactive media experiences, helping them to discover NASA research and achieve footage in a fun new way.
