Future Changing Exhibits
Changing Exhibits Hall
The Academy at 200:
The Nature of Discovery
Opening March 24, 2012
Building on the Academy’s extraordinary collections and two centuries of scientific exploration, The Academy at 200: The Nature of Discovery celebrates the Academy’s groundbreaking discoveries of the past and present and provides a glimpse into the future of one of the world’s greatest natural history museums.
Art of Science
Everything Under the Sun: New Photographs of Academy Specimens by Rosamond Purcell
March 3–May 20, 2012
Photographer Rosamond Purcell captures the extraordinary nature of everyday objects. A world-renowned Boston artist and author who has photographed natural history and anatomical collections for years, Purcell was the official photographer for Robert M. Peck’s new book A Glorious Enterprise: The Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia and the Making of American Science (University of Pennsylvania Press, April 2012). In this exhibit, Purcell presents a selection of the book’s stunning color photographs that depict some of the amazing specimens in the Academy’s vast collections. Purcell shot all of the objects in natural light, and her artistry reveals hidden wonders.
Flirtatious Feathers: A Colorful Collection of Academy Bird Photographs
May 26–September 23, 2012
Whether in flight or in song, many birds display vibrant plumage that charms mates and photographers alike. This kaleidoscope of colored feathers is the subject of this stunning exhibit featuring images from the Academy’s Visual Resources for Ornithology (VIREO), the most comprehensive bird image bank in the world. Built by the Academy in collaboration with exhibit design students from Drexel University’s Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts and Design, Flirtatious Feathers provides a bird’s-eye view into the intimate world of winged creatures.