“Implementing a Culture of Creativity & Making: the Rutgers University Art Library Lego Playing Station”

IMPLEMENTING A CULTURE OF CREATIVITY & MAKING: THE RUTGERS UNIVERSITY ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION

MEGAN LOTTS, ART LIBRARIAN

RUTGERS, THE STATE UNIVERSITY OF NEW JERSEY

HOW IS ALL BEGAN…THE I2C2 CONFERENCE IN MANCHESTER, UK

• LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY®

http://www.seriousplay.com/

• This workshop will involve participants

building models of their work existence and

the challenges we face as we seek to make

our library services more innovative

IMPLEMENTATION OF LEGO PLAYING STATION

• Installed in August 2014

• Used existing table in Art Library

• Created signage

• All legos were upcycled for project

• Kerri Sullivan, RU SCI graduate

student and Art Library summer

intern 2014, assisted with publicity,

set up, and making.

PRESS

Check out Rutgers Today https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZHhlwoy9Yc

PRESS

BLOCK PARTY

Scarlet Knight Days, models created by library faculty, library staff,

graduate students, and undergrads

LEGO CHARACTER CONTEST

CROWDSOURCED IMAGES

• Crowdsourcing of images has primarily

been images taken of table on daily basis.

• Plan to run a model making competition

post thanksgiving with incentive

• Most people were more than happy to

allow me to take their picture

ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION

ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION

ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION

ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION

ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION

ART LIBRARY LEGO PLAYING STATION

LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE EDA COURSE

• Way to connect with Landscape

Architecture Freshman.

• Gets Landscape Architecture

students into the Art Library which is

on a different campus than their

studios.

• Working with Faculty, Students, and

Staff in Landscape Architecture helps

me better understand the needs of

their department.

SAS HONORS COLLOQUIUM SECTION 10

• Thank you so much! My partner and I were playing with the legos for at

least two hours. I even snapchatted my lego model to all my friends.

COMMENTS

• The Art Library circulation desk received a call

from a woman asking if she could bring her kids

to the Art Library.

• “Would Play Again”

• “A Masterpiece”

• “I love you, thank you”

• “More Legos”

• “ I wish Alexander Library had legos too”

• “THIS IS AWESOME!! Great idea”

WHY DOES THE LEGO PLAYING STATION MATTER?

• Opportunity to slow down and have some FUN!

• Opportunity for students to connect with Libraries.

• Opportunity to educate users about the Libraries.

• Opportunity to engage students In a non traditional library setting that’s

active & hands on.

• Active learning builds problem solving skills that are transferable to scholarly

research.

Megan Lotts, MFA, M.L.I.S

Art Librarian

Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey

(848)932-7189

[email protected]

www.meganlotts.com

QUESTIONS

WORKS & IMAGES CITED

• Slide one: Evolution of the lego person image http://fabjoueauxlego.com/

• All images taken by Megan Lotts with proper RUL model release protocol.

• Rutgers Today video: http://youtu.be/iZHhlwoy9Yc

• Daily Targum Images taken by Tian Li, Staff Photographer