CASE

STUDY

Transforming 30 Years of Derek Hess Artwork

into an Immersive Museum Experience

The Cleveland Museum of Natural History - Cleveland, OH

ROCK OF AGES
November 2025 - March 2026

A retrospective exhibition celebrating the life, evolution and creative world of artist Derek Hess.

"We wanted visitors to feel inspired to create"

PROJECT OVERVIEW

When artist Derek Hess approached us to help develop and install Rock of Ages, the challenge extended far beyond simply hanging artwork.

The exhibition needed to condense more than 30 years of Derek’s prolific artistic career into a cohesive and immersive experience that could engage both longtime fans and first-time visitors along with adults and children alike.

The result became a deeply personal exhibition exploring Derek’s lifelong relationship with the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, his artistic evolution and the creative process behind one of Cleveland’s most celebrated artists.

THE CHALLENGE

Derek Hess’ body of work spans decades, mediums, and dramatically different visual styles from concert posters and paintings to rough sketches, personal studies and black-and-white illustrations.

The challenge was not only deciding what to include, but how to organize and present such an expansive archive in a way that felt cohesive, emotionally engaging, visually dynamic and interactive.

Our team spent countless hours reviewing sketchbooks, digital archives, family photos, original artwork, and interviews with Derek himself before organizing the exhibition into thematic categories including dinosaurs, fish, animals, concert posters, sketches, paintings and personal studies.

The goal was to create an experience that felt immersive rather than archival.

01

PERSONAL STUDIES

02

PAINTINGS

03

CONCERT POSTERS

04

ILLUSTRATIONS

MAKING A
TWO-DIMENSIONAL BODY OF WORK FEEL IMMERSIVE

One of the project’s biggest creative challenges was finding a way to make primarily two-dimensional artwork feel layered, dynamic and visually engaging throughout the exhibit.

To solve this, we utilized a wide variety of materials and fabrication techniques including acrylic, PVC, palboard, framed artwork, dimensional layering and large-scale wallpaper installations.

Different substrates were intentionally selected based on the character of each piece. Some works became dramatically more vibrant when printed on acrylic, while others felt more natural and tactile on palboard or framed materials.

Layered installations combining wallpaper backgrounds with floating acrylic elements added depth, movement and visual pacing throughout the exhibit helping transform the space into an environment visitors could move through and experience.

TELLING
DEREK’S STORY

At the center of the exhibition was Derek’s lifelong connection to the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.

The exhibit featured photographs, sketches and personal material dating back to Derek’s childhood including a photograph from his sixth birthday party at the museum in 1969.

Visitors experienced the progression of his artistic journey from childhood sketches and college work to internationally recognized pieces connected to institutions such as the Louvre and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

The exhibition became not only a showcase of artwork, but a story about inspiration, curiosity, childhood imagination, artistic evolution and Cleveland culture.

INTERACTIVE EXPERIENCE

To make the exhibition feel more personal and interactive, we incorporated one of Derek’s original drawing tables directly into the installation.

Surrounded by thumbtacked sketches and studies, the workstation gave visitors a glimpse into Derek’s creative process and the physical environment where many of the exhibited works were originally created.

Children visiting the museum were encouraged to sit at the desk and create their own drawings using sketchpads and pencils provided at the station, transforming the exhibit from a passive viewing experience into an active creative environment.

THE RESULT

Rock of Ages became an overwhelmingly positive and emotionally resonant experience for visitors of all ages.

The exhibition generated strong visitor engagement, enthusiastic feedback from families and children, increased social media visibility and positive response from museum staff.

Most importantly, the installation successfully transformed a massive and stylistically diverse archive into a cohesive environment that felt immersive, educational, personal and visually unforgettable.

SERVICES PROVIDED