Exhibit Developer/WriterSmithsonian Institution
3400 Pennsy Drive
Landover, Maryland 20785
Email: PowellJ2@si.edu
Phone: 301-238-2107
Visit John's Research Website
Research Disciplines: Research Interests:
Museum interpretation, interpretive planning, exhibition writing and editing, accessibility.
Biographical Sketch
John Powell is an exhibit developer/writer at Smithsonian Exhibits, the Smithsonian Institution’s central resource for developing, designing, and producing exhibitions. At Smithsonian Exhibits, John collaborates with curators, subject matter experts, designers, and others to plan and create engaging and accessible exhibitions on a wide range of subjects.
Prior to joining the Smithsonian in 2017, John worked as an exhibit writer at the Newseum in Washington, D.C. and as curator of the President Woodrow Wilson House, a National Trust Historic Site. He began his museum career in the U.K. as a researcher and assistant curator at the Black Country Living Museum.
Education
- MA in Museum Studies, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK, 2008
- BA in History, McGill University, Montreal, Canada, 2003
Other Research
Selected exhibitions:
Woodlawn House Visitor Center, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center
Working with the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center on an exhibition at the historic Woodlawn House on SERC’s campus
Diplomacy Is Our Mission, National Museum of American Diplomacy, opened 2019
Worked with the National Museum of American Diplomacy to develop, write, and edit their inaugural exhibition at the U.S. Department of State
Habitat, Smithsonian Gardens, opened 2019
Worked with Smithsonian Gardens to develop, write, and edit their first campus-wide exhibition
Orchids: Amazing Adaptations, Smithsonian Gardens, opened 2019
Worked with Smithsonian Gardens to develop, write, and edit an exhibition about orchids at the Donald W. Reynolds Center for American Art and Portraiture
Magnificent Obsessions: Why We Collect, Smithsonian Libraries, opened 2018
Worked with Smithsonian Libraries to develop, write, and edit an exhibition at the National Museum of American History marking Smithsonian Libraries’ 50th anniversary
Game Change: Elephants from Prey to Preservation, Smithsonian Libraries, opened 2018
Worked with Smithsonian Libraries to develop, write, and edit an exhibition at the National Museum of Natural History about elephant conservation