The Smithsonian’s Lemelson Center for the Study of Invention and Innovation will open its first permanent public home—the Lemelson Hall of Invention and Innovation—at the National Museum of American History July 1. The Hall will feature “Places of Invention,” a signature 3,500 square-foot exhibition examining hotspots of invention throughout history; Draper Spark!Lab, a hands-on space for children aged 6 to 12; and “Inventive Minds,” a small gallery that will introduce the work of the Lemelson Center.
Founded in 1995 by prolific American inventor Jerome Lemelson and his wife, Dorothy, the Lemelson Center leads the study of invention history at the Smithsonian. The exciting and original exhibitions and learning spaces that occupy the Lemelson Hall of Invention and Innovation physically represent the culmination of 20 years of intense research into the creative process of invention and innovation and of the development of novel educational theory and content.
“The Lemelson Center was founded on the idea—shared by Jerome and Dorothy Lemelson, the Smithsonian and myself—that the American creative and inventive spirit, now and in the past, is both a deeply cherished national characteristic and the energy source of a powerful economic engine,” said Art Molella, director of the center. “Visitors to the Lemelson Hall of Invention and Innovation will leave with a better understanding of our rich invention history, the knowledge that they and their communities are or can be inventive and the inspiration to shape their future for the better.”
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Kate Wiley
(202) 633-3312
wileyk@si.edu