Exploring How WaterWorks
Clay Center for the Arts and Sciences
Utilizing Our Experience
Boss Display worked closely with the Clay Center for the Arts and Sciences and Argyle Design to create a truly unique exhibit while meeting the goals and vision of the museum. Being experts in the field, Boss Display was approached to expand on the design and bring new ideas into being. We hosted a live demonstration of the gallery for Clay Center and Argyle staff, where they proposed changes that were tested in real time. Many of these suggestions were integrated into the final design. The attention to detail poured into this gallery means that when visitors first encounter WaterWorks, after crossing through its twelve foot entrance tunnel simulating an undersea cave, their curiosity and imaginations are already engaged.
Real World Excitement
WaterWorks, the enormous water exhibit inspired by the local Kanawha River, combines creativity and real-world science as it begins its flow from a simulated rain cloud cascading overhead. Visitors are encouraged to get hands-on once the water travels down through a wheel and enters a hydroelectric dam. The sophisticated electronic system engages visitors to control the water’s flow through the dam and use trial and error to explore its effect on the amount of power generated to light up a model town. Children operating the dam have fun using their imagination while witnessing the science behind local power generation.
Building Unique Interactions
The boat lock and many movable islands provide hands-on opportunities for exploratory and constructive play in the water’s flow. Children use the pump and tipping bucket to simulate flooding and engage in social problem-solving with their constructed islands and dams. Visitors explore STEAM concepts when they divert the river’s flow through a water wheel which powers a conveyor belt lifting colored balls overhead. A set of tracks above carry the balls away as children follow them across the room to their final destination.
“It’s a fun activity for the kids to learn about the characteristics and the properties of water.”
Inclusive and Engaging
As balls fall from the tracks above, they land in a fun and interactive water vortex leading to the Phenomenon Tank below. Featuring inclusive play for all ages, the table has water mushrooms and sprinklers, as well as Bernoulli jets that levitate balls in midair. Four sections of build-a-pipe encourage cognitive development and scientific thinking as children construct together or in parallel. Kids have open-ended interactions with the many moving parts, prompting both social creativity and the real-world scientific method. Visitors have fun and build confidence as they explore the countless ways water can be harnessed and enjoyed within WaterWorks.
Features:
Large entrance tunnel with lights and sounds that simulate an underwater environment
Rain cloud and cascading pans teach the science behind the water cycle
Visitors learn about hydroelectric power through the dam and several water wheels
Mobile islands and cargo ships promote hands-on real world thinking
Pumps and a tipping bucket engage visitors in a fun and social spectacle
Children interact with water-powered conveyor belt that lifts colorful balls
Interactive water vortex simulates the naturally occurring whirlpool phenomenon
Bernoulli jets are a fun way to learn a scientific principle
Water mushrooms and sprinklers engage visitors of all ages
Other Featured Work
