Each year members of the creative community (designers, developers, strategists, photographers etc.) come together to exchange ideas and inspiration at MAX, Adobe’s Creative Conference. I had the opportunity to tune in live and watch the day two keynote entitled “Community Inspires Creativity.” Four notable members of the creative community spoke, Rob Legato, an Oscar winning visual effects supervisor; Erik Johansson, a photographer and retouch artist; Paula Scher, an iconic graphic designer/illustrator; and Phil Hansen, a constraint-based artist who thrives within limitations.

Each presenter had a fascinating story to tell but I really latched on to a comment made by Scher. In talking about planning guidelines she says they are, “always preventing bad things from happening, but don’t always promote good things.” This comment prompted me to question this concept of preventing bad vs. promoting good in our work. How does this play into designing exhibits?

Working in exhibit design we are constantly challenged to design in a way that communicates effectively with our audience. How can we keep that communication informative, but positive? One method is phrasing signage in a way that suggests the visitor do one thing, rather than do another. For example, “Observe the birds eating in their natural habitat,” rather than “Don’t feed the birds.” In this instance, vocabulary, such as foraging or preening, can be reinforced as well as introducing flora and fauna that the bids may eat or encounter in the wild. In effect, we can use instructional opportunities not just to command, but also to inform, widening the visitor’s scope of knowledge and connection with the exhibit.

Another way we can promote good rather than just preventing bad is by ensuring that our visitors understand the value and impact. Whether it is a habitat, watershed, or historical event, the visitor needs to know how it relates to them. Cueing in to how we are all connected sheds light on how small things we do can have impacts down the road. Rather than just saying don’t waste, we can explain the long-term negative effects while suggest positive alternatives.

Obviously there are times when firm command or reprimand is necessary to prevent a negative or harmful outcome, but there is much to gain when it can be used as an opportunity for teaching and learning. How are you making the most of opportunities to promote good, rather than just prevent bad, at your site?

Also, the AdobeMAX keynote presentations are available to watch. I’d encourage you to check them out—you’re sure to come away inspired!