Exploratorium announces summer exhibition: The Art of Tinkering

Experience the playful and creative connections to art and science that will serve as a celebration of the creativity in all of us

SAN FRANCISCO (April 26, 2022)—This summer, the Exploratorium is celebrating curiosity and creativity with The Art of Tinkering, a playful hands-on exhibition beginning Saturday, June 18, 2022 and running through September 5, 2022. 

Inspired by the museum’s Tinkering Studio and the best-selling Exploratorium book, “The Art of Tinkering,” the exhibition is an opportunity for visitors of all ages to embrace their inner inventor and think with their hands. 

“Tinkering experiences empower adults and children alike to think for themselves while developing a deeper appreciation of the creativity and curiosity we all share,” said Karen Wilkinson, Director of Making and Tinkering at the Exploratorium. “The Art of Tinkering is a summer exhibition filled with experiences that blur the lines between art and science in playful ways.”

The exhibition experience will be anchored by three types of interactions, grouped into thematic clusters. The clusters allow visitors of all ages to delve into connections between art and science by interacting with Exploratorium exhibits, whimsical artworks, and tinkerable experiences. Thematic clusters include:

• SHINE – Light and Shadow
• ROLL – Motion and Mechanisms
• FLY – Wind and Air
• CONNECT – Circuits and Electronics
• BUILD – Structures and Construction

Artworks & Installations

In addition to clusters of thematic and interactive exhibits, the exhibitions will feature related artworks and installations. See familiar things used in unfamiliar ways with creations by Junior Fritz Jacquet, Diane Landry, Golan Levin, Reuben Margolin, Tosa Novmichi, Jie Qi and Natasha Dzurny, Scott Weaver, and Daniel Wurtzel. Artworks will range from large scale iconic works to interactive installations. Each thematic zone will aim to enhance and connect to artworks on display, emphasizing playful and personal connections to the materials and natural phenomena. 

Fabric dances hypnotically in Daniel Wurtzel’s Air Fountain.Photos © Copernicus Science Centre, Warsaw

Toilet paper rolls get personal in Junior Fritz Jacquet's Masques. Photos © 2022 Matthieu Gauchet

Exhibits

Pulling from the Exploratorium’s vast collection, the exhibition will feature recontextualized classic “tinkerable” exhibits and new interactive exhibits created through our work with museum partners around the world. 

Tinkerable Experiences

Play, invent, and repeat with exciting tinkerable experiences while investigating scientific phenomena. Create wind-powered sculptures and play with light and shadows as experimentation meets imagination this summer. 

The tinkering continues with special summer programming for all ages through family-friendly workshops, adults-only After Darks, Storytime Science, and more. The new Art of Tinkering exhibition store will offer a selection of fun books, circuit kits, and other materials for visitors of all ages to keep experimenting and tinkering at home.  

Calendar Editors, Please Note:

The Art of Tinkering

Saturday, June 18, 2022 - Monday, September 5, 2022

Dive into the joy of tinkering with artworks, contraptions, exhibits, and experiences for all ages. Sculpt with light and shadow, build (and break) circuits, and compose music from junk. See familiar things used in unfamiliar ways with creations by  Junior Fritz Jacquet, Diane Landry, Golan Levin, Reuben Margolin, Tosa Novmichi, Jie Qi and Natasha Dzurny, Scott Weaver, and Daniel Wurtzel.

Note: The Art of Tinkering is included with museum admission, and free for Exploratorium members.