JOSEPH BANH, MA Design Strategy + Research + Human-Centred Innovation + CX Program Design    
Toronto, CA   |   josephbanh@gmail.com  |  
+1.416.706.7663  |    https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephbanh/











BIHAR


A storied past for a prosperous future



Project Description

Client: Department of Art, Culture & Youth (DACY), Gov’t of Bihar, India

The State of Bihar has an incredibly rich history. It is the birthplace of Buddhism and the seat of power for ancient and medieval empires. Within Bihar state are many significant historic sites where events unfolded that significantly shaped the evolution of the Indian subcontinent. The government of Bihar had a compelling vision to share these stories with local Biharis, fellow Indians, and the world through an ambitious cultural revitalization and tourism program that included the building of new museums. 

Our team at Lord Cultural Resources were selected by the Department of Art, Culture & Youth (DACY) to help bring this vision to life.


Services

A new history museum was envisioned and located in Patna, Bihar. It would be the centre piece of the state’s cultural and tourism plan, enable a comprehensive telling of Bihar’s epic history, and provide a modernized visitor experience. 

Master planning & International Architectural Competition

In addition to being the museum master planners, the Lord Cultural Resources team led and administered an international architectural design competition for the museum and site design. Competition was fierce and included notable firms like Coop Himmelb(l)au with Archohm; Foster + Partners with CP Kukreja Architects; Snøhetta with SpaceMatters, and Studio Libeskind with Morphogenesis. Maki and Associates with Mumbai-based Opolis Architects were selected by a jury of international and Indian experts. 

Field research, Experience Strategy & Planning

Our team worked closely with officials & subject matter experts to develop the vision, mission, mandate, concept, and curatorial approach for the new Bihar Museum. I developed the visitor experience strategy and plan for the permanent exhibition galleries supported by my incredible Lord colleagues in Toronto and India. To better understand Bihar’s storied past and to get a feel for the local context we embarked on a study tour of ancient Bihari sites, analyzed state museum collections, and engaged subject matter experts in co-creation workshops. In partnership with the regional UNESCO office, we met with youth and the local community to learn about their dreams for what the museum can be.

Exhibition Design

I collaborated closely with our exhibition design team to translate the experience program into permanent exhibitions galleries and detailed exhibits. Working across time zones between Toronto and Tokyo, we worked closely with the Maki & Associates design team for base-building integration of exhibition elements and functional planning of the museum galleries throughout the architectural design process. 


Project Credits

Lord Cultural Resources Team: An incredible team effort. When I think about the Indian projects I immediately think about our local team who planned and coordinated everything in the field and took amazing care of me. Shoutouts in particular to: Batul, Aparna, Tushar, Mayank, and Polomi. Toronto friends and colleagues included Barry Lord, Maria Piacente, Yvonne Tang, Jacqueline Tang,  and Catherine Tanner.

Joseph Banh: Visitor experience program design lead, story & content development, stakeholder engagement, and research

Batul Raaj Mehta: Client engagement lead, stakeholder engagement co-lead

Barry Lord: Museum master plan, story & narrative, curatorial direction

Maria Piacente: Exhibition Design Project lead

Yvonne Tang: Stakeholder engagement & consultations co-lead

Jacqueline Tang: Exhibition design

Maki & Associates/OPOLIS: Architectural design 


Legend

  1. Architectural models of the Bihar Museum and site masterplan 
  2. Exhibit concept: Interactive map of Bihar State
  3. Permanent exhbition gallery rendering
  4. Indicative floor plan for pre-history & early Bihar galleries
  5. Permanent exhbition gallery rendering
  6. The iconic Didarganj Yakshi statue previously on display at Patna Museum
  7. Field research trip to Patna, Bihar to assess collection stores
  8. Community consultation session with local Patna youth, facilitated by local UNESCO partners
  9. Stakeholder workshops facilitated by the Lord team
  10. Defining key stories and themes with subject matter experts
  11. Subject matter expert consultations and prioritization workshop
  12. One of my favourite things about India is the dynamic visual culture 
  13. Community consultation session with local Patna youth, facilitated by local UNESCO partners
  14. Detail of museum collection
  15. Detail of Budhist flags and banners at historic Bodh Gaya where the historic Buddha achieved Enlightenment