Rounding out our current staff of on-the-floor facilitators, Hannah Correlli brings dynamic new thinking to the way we design and utilize Spark!Lab’s exhibit space. A recent graduate of the University of Maryland, College Park, Hannah draws on an academic background related to “design learning.” As our interview showed, Hannah is very enthusiastic about thinking, learning, and life generally! Read her words below.
Staff Profile
When did you start working at Draper Spark!Lab?
February 2018!
Where did you go to school, and what did you study? What are your intellectual interests?
I graduated from the University of Maryland this May with a degree in anthropology with a focus in human-centered design. To me, the methods and analysis used with anthropology allow for the insight and empathy needed for innovative design. Lately, I’ve been interested in how these things can be applied to the ways we design physical spaces.
What’s your favorite thing about Spark!Lab?
One of my favorite things has to be when you can see the excitement on people’s faces at the front door—both kids and adults! Or when you see those who were a little hesitant when they first came in really get into it and have a great experience.
What is your favorite object at NMAH?
If I had to choose, I love the space in Places of Invention about the birth of hip hop in the Bronx with the turntables. It really gives a holistic view of how sometimes an invention is so much more than a physical object, and the way it comes about is not always through the "spark" of an idea but a struggle.
What is your favorite museum in the world?
Okay, so, I have a “Top Three” . . .
First, the American Visionary Art Museum in Baltimore, Maryland. This museum is filled with amazing and unique art and was a huge part of my childhood! None of the artists in this museum have had any type of formal art education or training—visionary!
Second is the Center for Civil and Human Rights in Atlanta, Georgia. This museum is so beautifully designed and you can tell all of your senses were thought of when they were designing the exhibits.
Third, the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (MOCAA) in Cape Town, South Africa. This is a gorgeous art museum with really dynamic exhibits—and the building itself is actually an old silo complex that was carved out and custom designed to be a museum.
When you’re not working at the Museum, what do you do in your free time? What are your hobbies?
I love everything and anything “art” and “creativity”—or anything that makes me laugh! Laughter is definitely a hobby of mine.
Your favorite invention in the entire world?
Do donuts count?
