A Glorious Enterprise at The Academy of Natural Sciences at Drexel University, Philadelphia, a survey of 200 years of collecting, which I saw just prior to its closing last month.
I have a deep appreciation for the work of collecting, identifying and preserving specimens of the natural world. This exhibition was a far cry from the dusty dioramas for which natural history museums are known (though I also have a fondness for dusty dioramas). The room was dominated by a great wall of wood and glass, gridded off to separate and frame plants, animals, and minerals. A waste high display cabinet ran the length of the wall below the larger display and detailed the history of the Academy's collecting practices.
I was enamored with the gridded display - it was a brilliant aesthetic choice that recalled both the cabinet of curiosities and the scientist's storerooms ("Beauty is truth, truth beauty.") The smaller displays below the great grid elaborated on the extensive lengths to which researchers will go to acquire their specimens and the sometimes tedious nature of the scientific method. Of course, my photos (above) focused on the more aesthetic aspects of the exhibition, but if you'd like to read more on the fascinating history of the collection and the people behind it, do check out the book A Glorious Enterprise: The Academy of Natural Sciences Philadelphia and the Making of American Science.