The Collaboratory

“Collaboration” and “laboratory” converge in The Collaboratory, an interactive space that explores connections between objects from past centuries and the contemporary world. Central to the experience is the “collector's cabinet,” a densely installed space featuring everything from armor to astrolabes. Adjacent to the collections are drawers that open to reveal layers of interpretive multimedia—video, music, art—produced by teens working with local artist-educator Ray Chi. The Teen Lab, where such projects take shape through the Museum’s Teen Leadership Program, is open to the public to comment on the collaborations in process. The lab sits just beyond Beth Lipman’s all-glass Laid Table (Still Life with Metal Pitcher) and a room-sized camera obscura, where visitors can step into visual technology from another time.