Chicago’s Changing Climate Exhibit Concept
- Created by Span
- Self-Published
- Services
- Research
- Credits
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John Pobojewski
Concept, Design DirectionDesirée Solenberger
Concept, Design, Design ResearchZach Minnich
3D
Although the Midwest may be better positioned to withstand climate change than other U.S. regions, clear signs of environmental transformation are already emerging around Chicago. In response, Span presents Chicago’s Changing Climate — an innovative, experimental exhibition concept to shed light on the science close to home.
Through a series of immersive vignettes, each spotlighting a specific environmental shift—from shifting bird migrations and increasing tree loss to worsening air pollution, flooding, and rising ground temperatures—visitors are invited to connect personal memories and lived experiences with rigorous scientific research.
A hanging mobile of cardboard tube ”bird nests” creates a three-dimensional graph of bird species who are nesting up to 60 days earlier over the past hundred years. The inside and underside of each nest contains both the species and how much earlier they begin their nesting season, illustrating how warming climates is affecting where and when birds migrate.
Millions of Ash trees — nearly 8% of our regional tree population by some studies — have been lost to the emerald ash borer. A darkened gallery is covered in shadows inspired by dense tree canopies, broken up by occasional spot lights on didactic displays to mimic the cut stumps from lost trees.
The air quality within the Little Village neighborhood is some of the worst in Illinois, due to pollution from surrounding highways and industrial factories. Generations of residents tell their stories in looping video documentaries, experience through a hanging maze of smoky, translucent fabric with printed testimonials of their personal struggles.
Wet basements are a common Chicagoan complaint, as any lifelong resident will tell you. But the frequency and intensity of flooding events is definitely on the rise in the past decade. A series of short documentaries is presented amongst a life-size infographic of water levels during four stages of these flooding events — heavy rainfall, flooded property, resulting mold damage, and long-lasting health impacts.
Throughout the Loop, our buildings are sinking. Due to warming temperatures, leading to compacting soil, structures throughout the city are getting lower and lower each year. A projection-mapped 3D printed model of the Loop creates an interactive experience for visitors to learn more about what buildings are most impacted.
The exhibit concludes with a powerful call to reflection: personal stories from local voices invite visitors to contribute their own observations of Chicago’s changing environment. These contributions feed into a live, interactive projection—an evolving digital mosaic that can be explored both in person and online. Together, it becomes an immersive, living archive of our shared experience in this transforming climate.
