The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis have shared with us some preliminary design sketches for an upcoming exhibit celebrating the Transformers! The exhibition opens on March 7, in partnership with Hasbro, and will feature a selection of vintage toys from the line’s 30 year history, including a 10 foot tall Age of Extinction Optimus Prime statue, an exhibition of full-size Transformers fan costumes, and a toy design area showcasing the key phases of the toy design process.
The Children’s Museum has sent us over a full writeup to go with the preliminary images, which conveys the overall experience of the exhibit. Find out more at
www.childrensmuseum.org/future-exhibits, and be sure to check out the event when it opens on March 7.
Read on, after the break, for the full writeup, and be sure to follow the Children’s Museum on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter for further updates. A note from The Children’s Museum:
The exhibit design and social media teams at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis are excited to share these preliminary design sketches for the upcoming exhibit Transformers: Robots in Disguise™. The exhibit opens at The Children’s Museum on March 7, in partnership with Hasbro.
These sketches are used to convey the overall experience of the exhibit in the early stages of development. They help illustrate the relationship between the displayed objects and the hands-on learning activities. You can learn more at
www.childrensmuseum.org/future-exhibits. Enjoy this sneak peek!
Welcome to the Transformers Universe! The exhibit’s entry will ask you to “Choose Your Team,” with featured photo ops with Optimus Prime and Megatron. [Pictured below: Preliminary concept sketches, exhibit entry.]
Examine Transformers vintage toys and character images, which represent a sampling of the 6,000 characters developed by Hasbro over the past 30 years. This space includes a 10’ Optimus Prime statue from Transformers: Age of Extinction, an Autobot and Decepticon character display, and other interactives focused on the fantasy world of Transformers. [Pictured below: Preliminary concept sketches, Transformers’ Universe area.]
There will also be a display of full-size Transformers fan costumes, including The Children’s Museum’s own Bumblebee costume. [Pictured below: Bumblebee atrium show costume as it’s prepped for exhibit display.]
The Hasbro toy design area will allow you to participate in key phases of the toy making process including aspects such as conceptual design, engineering, and testing. Enter an immersive space emulating Hasbro designers at work and watch a 3D printer printing a grey model prototype. [Pictured below: Preliminary concept sketches, Creator’s Design area.]
Autobot Central is a facilitated program space featuring hands-on workshops where visitors design robotic creations using some of the same skills used by Transformers designers. The space will also feature vintage commercials and cartoons. [Pictured below: Preliminary concept sketches, Autobot Central.]
The Become Bumblebee interactive asks visitors to imagine if YOU were a Transformer as you virtually transform into a robot on screen. [Pictured below: Preliminary concept sketches, virtual interactive.]
luks0r
I'll be flying my 2 boys out to see this over the weekend. Any tips from those who have gone, or anyone else planning on being there this weekend? I've decided in case the exhibits are a lot to see (including the newly opened Hot Wheels exhibit) I'm going to do 2 days at the museum. I want to get their little brains interested in the creation / manufacturing process especially. =)
nazgul777
This looks so damn cool. I love a good museum display.
Shockwave76
Awesome, I'd love to do a road trip to see this.
moreprimeland
Won't be able to hit the opening weekend, but once this weather calms down, gotta make a trip up there…. that is one fabulous looking display area. Great Job!!!
cheetor71
If only I were closer. I would so go to this.
Bruticon
Well crap, something of note finally happens in a place that's close to me and I'm going to be in Nashville the opening weekend. At least it looks like it will be going on for a little while so I'll see when the nephews are available and make a trip there with them some time.
Indy LF
You say that like Indy, Chicago, & the whole midwest sucks. You can move bro.. as for the bumblebee costume, it's nothing special. It transforms when you kneel down into the camaro. It looks pretty cool but I was more impressed with the robotic prime in universal florida. There's a giant prime made from junkyard scraps in Gatlinburg Ripleys museum. I'd rate Univeral Robots 1, Indy Bee 2, Ripleys Prime 3. The logos for that museum look similar to how my display is. I live here so only downside is it will probably make my display feel like a joke.
NGatron
Oh wow, can't wait to take my kids to it!
ZapRowsdower
Yeah, I can't believe INDIANAPOLIS, of all places, is doing this. Did California just not care? Cause this stuff should be EVERYWHERE… yet, I wonder if parent groups would hate this for its overt (subtle?) consumerism?
I think it's a great idea, as it's a toy that encourages critical thinking and imagination. I see so few toy exhibits in museums, though. Makes me wonder if parents just block the projects before they can take off.
THANK YOU! Looking forward to stopping by the gift shop with the ankle-biters; not looking forward to seeing the ridiculous prices!
SAF7
It's where I got my RtS Laser Prime back then, so they probably will.
LegendAntihero
I wonder if they sell TFs in the gift shop
iamratchet
This is nice. The Indy Children's Museum has done some great things in the past with Transformers.
Johnator
I am THERE!
Sigmus Prime
Wait, so – only Indianapolis? Dangit. I'm nowhere near there }:[.
Autovolt 127
I wish I was going to be in the Indianapolis area in the next few months or so.
Holy Crap….nice! so will you guys get them back when its all over?
gamerdude627
That looks awesome! Doubt I'll be able to go…
Sol Fury
Nice! Any particularly exciting pieces that do not often get a public showing?
Karl Hartman
Pete Sinclair, Tony Preto, and I contributed about 150 vintage toys to the display. Looking forward to seeing how they look when it gets all finished!
Afterburner
Doesn't look very interesting. Hope you like crap, kids.
AutobotAlvaron
That Movie Bumblebee costume looks uncomfortable, and what about all that kibble/backpack.?