Over the weekend, we visited the Lee Miller exhibition @tate Britain. I’ll write about the exhibition tomorrow, but today I want to discuss the visitor experience, which left me speechless.
It was lunchtime, and there appeared to be no communication between the staff at the door and those inside because people were let in despite the first room being completely full.
The exhibition was arranged as a series of small, interconnected rooms with walls covered by photos hung so close together that visitors had to line in a queue until they could move forward a bit, look at a photo, and wait their turn to move to the next, while those behind them waited impatiently. This created frustration with groups chatting and often forgetting to move along, further slowing progress.
I found myself moving back and forth between rooms to find gaps in the queue to catch a view from (always from the second row). It was a bit of a mission, and although I faced some pushing and squeezing, I could at least move around. For those with limited mobility, it was a lot more difficult. At some point I spotted a wheelchair user in the middle of a room unable to join the slow-moving queue or manoeuvre through the crowd.
The last time I felt this level of frustration was nearly 20 years ago at the large Leonardo da Vinci show at the V&A, after Dan Brown’s book, when that institution also underestimated the exhibition's popularity. I ended up buying the catalogue just to see what I’d missed.
So what would I have done differently as a designer?
- I would improve communication within the team and stagger entry if necessary.
- For the layout, I would design a more open plan with 360-degree hanging that featured enlarged images highlighting themes or key details, avoiding text panel bottlenecks or tiny prints squeezed onto walls.
- There would be ample space for visitors to move and pause without blocking others and I would ensure a clear circulation route to prevent bottlenecks and provide sufficient space for wheelchair users and those with other mobility aids.
- Integrated seating and quiet areas for visitor respite would also be incorporated.
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