Sometimes one museum visit can have a tremendous impact. Enter Jayson, a teenager who is a LEGO® enthusiast. Jayson and his family visited CMA for the first time on a recent Friday. None of them had ever been to Columbus before. They traveled all the way from Virginia to see his entry in the 2014 LEGO® Design Challenge exhibition. I had been in contact with them months before to coordinate mailing Jayson’s design from Virginia when he was selected as a finalist, and I was thrilled to finally meet them all on Friday.
Jayson is a huge LEGO® fan, and when the 2014® LEGO Design Challenge popped up in an online search he said “it was irresistible.” Jayson was selected as a finalist due to his imaginative concept of a COTA Union Station. He combined new and traditional technologies to think about solving the issue of limited public transportation in Columbus. In his design he built a spiral escalator that is wheel-chair accessible, an on-site daycare center complete with ball pit, and a magnetic levitated trolley. “As a fan of model trains, it was not hard to decide on imagining New Columbus with a rail system that includes a classic rail as well as magnetic levitation. We have a family friend who uses a wheel chair, and an accessible spiral escalator seemed like a natural innovation.”
At CMA we believe museums have the capacity for transformative experiences. We can make a positive impact. In this case, Jayson and his family were able to celebrate Jayson’s creative accomplishment by viewing his design in the exhibition. They all enthusiastically embraced a new experience by traveling to Columbus for the first time. They also spent time together during their visit; they went on a docent led tour, played in the Center for Creativity, and of course, built with LEGO® bricks.
Jayson’s mother reflected on their visit: “We loved visiting Columbus Ohio; the CMA is a beautiful facility. Just entering the building through the oval garden, you feel you are somewhere special. It was great to travel to a place specifically dedicated to creativity. It really resonated with our family that someone would build a Center for Creativity. We cannot wait to return in the future once the renovation is complete.”
Be sure to catch Think Outside the Brick exhibition and display of finalists in our 2014 LEGO® Design Challenge before they close January 25, 2015.
