>Anne,
>The single most important aspect of investigating a design firm, in
>my opinion, is to ascertain its experience in your particular
>field.  It is not enough to have a firm that has "museum exhibit"
>experience; in our museum's case, we want to know it has
>*aviation*, and more particularly, WWII experience.

Maybe aviation is a special case, but in general I disagree with this
criterion. Can the people you're talking to interpret a complex subject
through a variety of media, and make it understandable, interesting, and
fun? Of course if you ask them this, they'll say "sure we can." My advice
is to go see their projects and talk to their former clients. Don't just
look at their slides and listen to their descriptions. Find out how their
old projects are holding up and how the owners feel about them.

>Also, look for companies that are members of the Exhibit Designers
>and Producers Association.

Who are they?

Sharyn Horowitz, The Health Museum of Cleveland
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8911 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, OH 44160
(216) 231-5010
fax 216-231-5129