Update: Exhibit Renovation Planning

The Baranov Museum is planning to renovate our permanent exhibits in order to better preserve our collections and to improve our telling of Kodiak's history. Please note that we are currently planning, and changes will not be implemented for several years. This means that if you come to the museum, you won't see us in the middle of a construction project quite yet.

Our exhibit designer, Sarah Asper-Smith of Exhibit AK, has recently submitted the first exhibit design documents. Exhibit AK is responsible for turning the content that we develop into construction documents.

This concept map encompasses the exhibit themes and the major exhibit sections. It serves as a guide to our exhibit topics and the themes that unite them.

Environmental Displays/ Historic Recreations will provide a glimpse into the past of the magazin, highlighting different eras and the building's use over time. For example, the fur store will be a small section showing the inside of the magazin when it was used to hold furs for the Russian-American Company. The Alaska Commercial Company dining room will tell the story of the murder of Benjamin McIntyre and depict the magazin as it appeared in the 1880s. The 1940s living room will show a vignette representing the Eskine family's living room, on the eve of hosting a party for WWII servicemen. Finally, the Governor's Mansion Rooming House display will depict the Fields family kitchen in 1964, following the Great Alaska Earthquake and Tsunami.

Cases are just that- museum cabinets specifically designed to fit the character of the magazin and the preservation requirements of our objects. Again, this is a conceptual document, so there will likely be more than the 7 cases depicted above when we are finished.

Exhibit Sections are the main exhibition topics. Note that "Boarding House" refers to a period in the building's history- the topics will relate to the more recent past.

Above you will see the initial concept sketches, showing both cases and the historic recreation of the Fields family kitchen. The "Cabinet of Personalities," to the left, will contain objects, photos, and stories related to specific individuals in Kodiak's past. Is there some Kodiak character that you think should be included in the cabinet? Please let us know.

Would you like to see the conceptual design packet? Please stop by the museum to pick up a copy, or contact us and we will send you a copy. What are your observations, concerns and questions about the process or these initial concept documents? Please leave comments below or contact the museum to share your thoughts with us. Thanks to all of you who have already provided feedback!