Mary Brogan Museum of Art and Science facts for kids
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| Established | 1998 |
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| Location | (former) 350 South Duval Street Tallahassee, Florida |
| Type | Art, Science center |
The Mary Brogan Museum of Arts and Science, also known as the Brogan Museum, was a special place in Tallahassee, Florida. It was a museum that combined both art and science, offering fun and educational exhibits for everyone.
Contents
History of the Museum
The Brogan Museum was located in downtown Tallahassee. It was created by joining two smaller museums that were having a tough time: The Museum of Art/Tallahassee and the Odyssey Science Center. These two groups started separately in the early 1990s.
They decided to share a building in 1998 and then officially merged in the year 2000. The museum building was built on land owned by the City of Tallahassee. The museum was named after Mary Brogan, who sadly passed away in 1997. She was the wife of Frank Brogan, a former Lt. Governor of Florida. Mary Brogan cared a lot about education, art, and learning.
What the Museum Offered
The museum was connected to big organizations like the Association of Science and Technology Centers (ASTC) and was a Smithsonian Affiliate. This meant it was part of a network of great museums!
The main goal of the Brogan Museum was to help people get excited about how art, science, math, and technology are all connected. It had two floors filled with hands-on science exhibits where you could explore and learn by doing. There was also an art gallery that showed many different kinds of artworks.
Some cool exhibits the museum hosted included:
- Bodies: The Exhibition in 2009, which showed the human body in amazing detail.
- Dale Chihuly's Seaforms in 2003, featuring beautiful glass sculptures.
- Many shows with animatronic dinosaurs from Kokoro Sanrio, which were like real-life moving dinosaurs!
The museum also had fun programs like "Camp All That!", a day-camp focused on art and science. Other activities included:
- StarLab: A special planetarium where you could learn about stars and space.
- EcoLab: Tanks with aquatic life, letting you see different water creatures.
- The WCTV Weather station: A place to learn about weather.
The museum was also home to a beloved guinea pig named George for many years!
Florida's World War II Memorial Project
In 2004, the museum worked with the Florida Department of Education and other groups to create a special learning tool. They made CDs with historical materials, personal stories, and interviews about World War II. This helped students learn about this important time in history.
Some Science Exhibits
- 2003: Seeing the Unseen: Photographs by Harold Edgerton
- 2010: Videotopia
- 2008: The Roswell Exhibit
- 2010: STRIDe Lab ME2 outreach program
Some Art Exhibits
- 2001: Hello Cuba. Braking Barriers Contemporary Cuban Contemporary Art
- 2005: Art and Ecology Triennial
- 2006: Transitory Patterns: Florida Women Artists
- 2009: The Kinsey Collection
- 2008: Enrique Chavarria: Journey Into the Subconscious
- 2010: North by Southwest, Native American Art: From the Collection of : I.S.K. Reeves V & Sara W. Reeves
- 2010: Appetite: Expressions of the Politics Encircling Food
- 2011: Titanic: The Artifact Exhibition
- 2011: Coming Out of the Closet: Clothing Art as an Emergent Form
Museum Closure
In January 2012, the museum announced it would close for a while. They tried to keep some programs going, like "Camp All That!", through the summer. However, the museum was facing big financial problems. They tried to raise money, even selling some of their art collection.
In early 2013, after a request for funding from Leon County didn't work out, the museum closed permanently. The main reasons were money troubles and not being able to bring in very popular, "blockbuster" exhibits that would attract many visitors.
What Happened to the Building?
After the museum closed, there were plans to use the building for other purposes. By 2017, the building was completely changed by Tallahassee Community College (TCC). It became a special center for non-profit organizations and new ideas.
The building was renovated and now has offices, meeting rooms, and spaces for training and working together. It also houses groups like the Institute for Nonprofit Innovation and Excellence. For a while, there was even a Starbucks coffee shop inside, run by TCC to help students get job experience. However, the Starbucks closed in early 2020 due to its own financial challenges.
Images for kids
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Construction of the Museum of Art and Odyssey Science Center, 1994
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Bird's eye view showing construction of the Mary Brogan Museum of Art and Science at Kleman Plaza in Tallahassee, Florida, 1994
