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The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis unveiled a new brand and mark that better reflect its stature as a global leader among museums serving children and families and offering highly engaging, interactive and imaginative learning experiences.
The new brand reflects the organization’s position as the world’s largest children’s museum and its demonstrated commitment to continually expand on the world-class exhibits and initiatives it offers to children and families.
“Building on the excitement of opening a new Welcome Center, bringing world-class exhibits such as Tutankhamun: The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs to Indianapolis, hosting a fundraiser dedicated to Ryan White featuring international superstar Elton John, and looking forward to the 2011 opening of National Geographic Treasures of the Earth, we are unveiling a new brand that best reflects the museum of today, ” said Jeffrey H. Patchen, museum president and CEO.
At more than 470, 000 square feet and featuring 11 permanent exhibits dedicated to the arts, sciences and humanities, The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis is the largest children’s museum in the world. In 2004, the museum opened Dinosphere®: Now You’re In Their World, an immersive exhibit featuring the largest collection of dinosaur fossils in a children’s museum in the Unites States. This unprecedented exhibit was the first in a series of innovative new permanent exhibits developed by the museum, including Fireworks of Glass in 2006, The Power of Children: Making a Difference in 2007, and Take Me There: Egypt in 2009. In 2009, The Children’s Museum also played host to the traveling exhibit Tutankhamum: The Golden King and the Great Pharaohs, the only children’s museum to host this one-of-a-kind exhibit.
“The new Children’s Museum’s brand and mark better reflect our leadership position among children’s museums with highly engaging, interactive and imaginative learning experiences that appeal to people of all ages, ” said Patchen. “Our commitment to extraordinary family learning drives everything we do, and our new brand best reflects who we are as an institution.”
“The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis epitomizes what we mean when we say, ‘Raising the Game’, ” said Don Welsh, president and CEO, Indianapolis Convention & Visitors Association “The museum’s new brand is yet another example of its efforts to raise Indianapolis’s stature domestically and internationally. We are delighted to prominently feature The Children’s Museum in our advertising campaign and it is a significant year-round attraction that draws both leisure and convention visitors to the city.”
The museum’s brand is being launched as the institution prepares to celebrate its 85th anniversary, an occasion to celebrate the organization’s many milestone achievements and the positive attention it brings to Indianapolis. Last year, the museum welcomed more than 1.3 million visitors—its highest attendance to date. Museum membership was also at an all-time high with more than 31, 000 households taking advantage of this valuable option. And each year, the museum makes a vital contribution to the Central Indiana economy, injecting $73.4 million in 2008 alone—due in part to strong cultural tourism attendance by visitors residing more than 100 miles outside of Indianapolis.
“The Children’s Museum has a long and proud history in Indianapolis, ” said Julia Lacy, Children’s Museum board chair. “Unveiling a new brand is the next step for our organization and will strengthen our commitment to serve not only the local families who support us so well, but also to bring new families to the city to experience all the wonderful, fun and one-of-a-kind experiences the museum and city of Indianapolis offer.”
The new Children’s Museum’s mark reflects the design of its new Welcome Center with its roofline raised by a life-size adult Brachiosaur so that a young Brachiosaur can enter, exciting children and adults alike and evoking a sense of awe as visitors enter the museum. The mark also reflects the welcoming spirit that supports the museum’s position as the biggest and the best, and indicates its leadership status among its peers.
The Children’s Museum will implement the new brand and mark over the course of several months. A summer advertising campaign targeted to out-of-state visitors will soon begin, utilizing the new brand on billboards and television commercials. Changes to local advertising and museum signage and publications will begin in late summer and continue over a yearlong period as the museum cycles naturally through updates to its collateral.
The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis is a nonprofit institution committed to creating extraordinary family learning experiences that have the power to transform the lives of children and families. The 472, 900 square-foot facility houses 11 major galleries. Visitors can explore the physical and natural sciences, history, world cultures, the arts, see how dinosaurs lived 65 million years ago in Dinosphere: Now You’re in Their World®, experience Dale Chihuly’s Fireworks of Glass and examine children’s impact in shaping history in The Power of Children: Making a Difference. The Children’s Museum, situated on 19 acres of land in Indianapolis, presents hundreds of programs and activities each year. For more information about The Children’s Museum in English and Spanish, visit www.childrensmuseum.org.
