Ruby Slippers

One of the highlights of my time at the National Museum of American History was my experience working on the 3-West reopening. This project included work on the music lobbies, window wells, large objects display and the Ruby Slippers. This page will be dedicated to my experience with the Ruby Slippers. My participation started small, but ended up becoming increasingly more involved.

During my first semester of interning, I assisted other designers on altering lighting for the final 3-West conceptual model which had been mostly completed the summer before. I was not well versed enough with Vectorworks to contribute much at this point, so there was not much for me to work on. This time was a great opportunity to learn from the best, by watching over shoulders to learn some of the skills I would need in the spring.

By mid-December the conceptual design had been approved and it was time to start detailing. My first detailing project for the Ruby Slippers was the bare bones case that would go inside a scenic display. I had just finished a project which involved detailing but this would be my first solo project. The case was simple. A five sided vitrine style with extra space underneath for preventative conservation controls such as humidity and temperature controls.  

When I returned for the spring semester, it turned out that some of the conceptual design would need to be changed. At this time, I was joined by another intern and we had to figure out how we are going to construct the scenic display. After some time we realized that the current display was either going to be to heavy, not fireproof or too expensive, so we had to start over.

With our supervisor we brainstormed many ideas. One was to reinterpret the existing idea but with fabrics columns. This new idea became too literal of the Emerald City for the team. During one of many brainstorming sessions about this issue, I was suddenly reminded of the phrase “pay no attention to the man behind the curtain" and the idea of a curtain was born. This concept was evocative of the Emerald City but not as literal.

The curtain went through many phases. First, it was more like a maze where when you got to the center it was a private moment with the slippers. Then it evolved into a singular curtain that just hid the shoes from the hallway to make it feel more private, but was not as challenging to access. We played with the idea of a heavy fabric like a stage curtain. After meeting a few times with the Directors Council, the consensus seemed to be that these ideas were not lush enough for their taste. After regrouping again the curtain turned into what it is now: the metal chain.

My biggest contributions to the final design were carpet selection and the graphic panels. I am thrilled that the design team went with the carpet I found for two reasons: one reason being because I thought the color was fun. I am sure visitors do not notice, but the carpet is two toned which makes it more dynamic and less flat in appearance. The second reason is, the carpet still subtly hints at those original ideas of the emerald city from the original design.

For the graphic panels, when I was working on the project it hadn't been decided how much No Kings Collective would be involved in the Ruby Slippers gallery, at the time that I left the museum. Though many amazing graphic treatments were later added to the wall representing the poppies from the film and some color choices had been adjusted, one can still see some of my work in the final product.  The graphic strip in the middle of the wall, text arrangements and image selections are all part of my original design.

This project was a true test of my collaboration skills. It was the first major project I worked on where I was not working in a situation where it was just myself and a senior designer. For this project the entire design team was involved so I had to learn how to balance many competing voices. I am grateful to have had any part in the design of the ruby slippers and to have worked alongside  so many talented professionals.  It was truly a personally rewarding experience.

Spring 2019 Update

On a recent visit to the museum I noticed something different about the Ruby Slippers exhibition. The chain was gone! After some chatting with staff members, I found out that the greatest fear was realized. Though many visitors enjoyed the tactile element of the chain, many ended up pulling on the chains to the point that it had to come down. It is unfortunate since this cancer had been raised at nearly every stage of the design process.

The lack of chain does make it easier to see the lovely murals!