Berkshire Museum to Reopen Feigenbaum Hall of Innovation April 16

PITTSFIELD — The Feigenbaum Hall of Innovation, one of the most popular core exhibitions at the Berkshire Museum, will undergo a significant upgrade and reopen to the public on Saturday, April 16. The improvements and upgrades to the Hall of Innovation are supported by a grant from the Feigenbaum Foundation that has pledged $500,000 to the Berkshire Museum, to be used for a series of annual improvements over the next few years.

The Feigenbaum Foundation has made a commitment to “ensure the Feigenbaum Hall of Innovation at the museum is on the leading edge of exploring innovation in the Berkshires and beyond. This will require ongoing intellectual, financial, and physical resources to implement and maintain a high-level core experience for visitors in the Hall,” said Emil George, president of the Feigenbaum Foundation.

While the Feigenbaum Hall of Innovation will continue to feature the accomplishments of Berkshire innovators and the many ways they were able to change the world around them, visitors will experience several exciting new additions. The highly anticipated Mindball brain game will engage visitors of all ages. The only one of its kind in the state of Massachusetts available to the public, Mindball uses EEG biofeedback sensors to track the players’ alpha and theta brain waves sending the ball across the table and into their opponent’s goal.

In addition, the Museum’s brand-new interactive app, i-Innovate, provides a digital visitor experience, from opportunities to create and innovate right in the galleries to accessing expanded content and information. The video displays at each entrance to the Hall have been updated with new innovators, new ideas, and a fresh look. The Hall of Innovation will boast all-new interactive activities, original artwork, and new displays and objects from the museum’s permanent collection, as well as fresh paint and new carpet.

“I was fortunate to be part of the team that originally designed the Feigenbaum Hall of Innovation,” said Maria Mingalone, Berkshire Museum’s director of Curatorial Affairs and Collections. “After several years observing how the exhibition engages visitors to think creatively, we are excited to expand the audience experience through fresh new technology, with Mindball and the new i-Innovate app as centerpieces of this first upgrade. By modeling innovative thinking, we anticipate making ongoing improvements to keep the Hall of Innovation truly innovative, including the addition of new innovators and exhibit components in the coming years.”