Shaking up the Museums’ permanent collection with a ground breaking, earth science-based experience.

MET’s exhibition, located in the Natural History Museum in London, explores how wind, water, sun, and other forces shaped and moulded the Earth. Our brief for the Restless Surface gallery was to add a new level of dynamism to the subject matter, communicating the true drama of earth sciences whilst staying true to the scientific facts and agenda.

It is one of three galleries in a £12 million Earth Galleries project and continues to be a place for lay visitors and geologists to understand dramatic rock and mountain formations. It is a place to discover how stones change shape and explore many of the interactive exhibits individually or as a school or family group.

Working with the Natural History Museum curators we took this subject matter and created an inspiring and contemplative gallery firmly based on interactivity, making this difficult subject as accessible and understandable to children as to adults.

According to AV Magazine, ‘stunning light and sound effects create a sense of powerful forces, from the gentle lapping of water on stone to the terrifying force of a hurricane’.

Dr Neil Chalmers, the Director of the Natural History Museum at the time, commented:

‘I believe we have created the finest earth science complex anywhere. The Earth Galleries combine education with entertainment and discovery with scientific expertise. MET Studio have made a great job of it. Their creative response to our demanding brief is one of the high points of the new Earth Galleries.’

Within two weeks of opening, the museum saw a 79% jump in visitor figures, compared to the old galleries within the same period a year before (Leisure Week Magazine)