Below is an exhibition review by Autumn Smith
Fair Play: The Bobby Jones Story
The Atlanta History Center
SHEFFIELD HALE, President
GORDON JONES, Curator
March 17, 2017-Ongoing
The Atlanta History Center
SHEFFIELD HALE, President
GORDON JONES, Curator
March 17, 2017-Ongoing
Golf has been a sport that has been able to transcend across different cultures and races. Golf is one of the oldest and most common sports played throughout the world and has shaped the historical context of America and internationally. For many people of this generation, Tiger Woods has reigned supreme as the world's best golfer, but before his time was another sports giant, Bobby Jones. Bobby Jones captured the hearts and minds of the world during the Golden Age of American Sports during the 1920s with his impeccable golf skills and sportsmanship that catapulted him to the forefront of American sports. Robert Tyre "Bobby" Jones popularized the game of golf and created lasting traditions for the sport from the "Grand Slam" to the creation of one of the world's most famous golf course, Augusta National. For almost fifty years, Bobby Jones helped to shape and catapult the game of golf to extensive heights the world's view of American sportsmanship.
On the 115th anniversary of Bobby Jones' birthday, the Atlanta History Center in Atlanta, Georgia, honored Jones with the opening of the exhibition "Fair Play: The Bobby Jones Story" for his contributions to the City of Atlanta and the game of golf. The Atlanta History Center created the exhibition with the objective visitors and guest will "Discover the man who transcended sports during the Great Depression and became an American hero at a time when the nation most needed one" 1 The Atlanta History Center serves as the leading historical institution on the preservation and presentation of Atlanta and Southern history with the mission "through its collections, facilities, programs, exhibitions, and publications preserves and interprets historical subjects pertaining to Atlanta and its environs and presents subjects of interest to Atlanta's diverse audiences." 2 The Atlanta History Center's exhibition on Bobby Jones aligns with their mission because of the extensive relationship between Jones and the City of Atlanta, as Atlanta being his home town.
The Bobby Jones exhibition focuses on one of America's most famous athletes and is a topic that has a broad audience and has the ability to attract a general audience. The exhibition's central themes focus on Jones's personal life, his professional golf career, the development of the Augusta National Golf Club and the Master's tournament, and his relationship with St. Andrews. Jones's personal life is displayed through the exhibition but does not leave the audience with a great sense of knowing much about Jones' personal life. The exhibition features a timeline of Bobby Jone's life, but there are significant gaps in details for years throughout Jones' life. The exhibition also lacks in personal artifacts related directly to Bobby Jones, having most of the artifacts being secondary artifacts or replicas. The theme of Augusta National is less detailed than the other themes, even though the history of Augusta National is a popular topic. The exhibition could have featured more personal artifacts and behind the scene historical information on Augusta National's development. The exhibition could add an inside look to the Augusta Nation Country Club because of the exclusivity of actual visitation, which would help drive the exhibition. Augusta national should have been more in-depth discussed throughout the exhibition and held more artifacts related to the Masters' tournament. The theme of Jones' professional golf career is delightfully depicted considering the limited spacing of the exhibition. The exhibition creators were able to educate audience on the significant events of Jones's professional golf career and made emphasis on his historic achievements. The relationship Bobby Jones had with St. Andrews is accurately depicted throughout the exhibition. The exhibit has a section related solely to the relationship between Jones and St. Andrews. The St. Andrews section also has a collection of newspapers from a sub newspaper of the New York Times, Mid-Week Pictorial, that features Jones on the front page. The St. Andrews theme does a superb job of depicting the humanitarianism of Bobby Jones.
The Bobby Jones exhibition design matches its theme, an old school player, an old school look. The exhibition gives an old school contemporary appearance that lacks in color and stands out sections. The exhibition entrance is a black and white photo with little invitation to the exhibition. Although black and white photos can be appealing, they can also give the audience feelings of dullness. The entrance panel to the exhibit does not give great detail as to what the exhibit will feature, only opinion-based statements about the character of Bobby Jones, which does not give the audience a clear understanding of what they are about to view. The exhibition space is minimal compared to the three surrounding exhibitions at the Atlanta History Center, "Gather Around," "Turning Point," and "Black Citizenship in the Era of Jim Crow," Which limits the content able to be displayed in the exhibition. The exhibition's audio and visual components benefited by giving the audience information that could not be displayed. The exhibition featured three videos that complement the themes. The curators also use audience engagement with trivia games that depend on visitors' prior golf knowledge. Visitor engagement is an important concept when creating an exhibition because it offers the audience a chance to feel involved in their learning process.
The Bobby Jones exhibition helps to educate the general knowledge about the life of Jones and his influences on the game of golf. The exhibition offers information for the enhancement of public knowledge. Fair Play offers historical information about an important figure in American history. Golf is one of the most commonly played sports, but museum exhibits do not often feature golf exhibits. The Bobby Jones exhibition contributes to the expansion of the history of golf.
Fair Play demonstrates a unique use of small space and its curators' ability to encompass all the major themes of the topic. The Bobby Jones Story offers a unique look at the life of Bobby Jones from the perspective of his home town. The exhibition lacks original and direct artifacts of Bobby Jones and personal information regarding his life, but the shortcomings do not ultimately affect the exhibition's effectiveness. The Atlanta History Center does a fantastic job adequately telling the story of Bobby Jones.
1. "Fair Play: The Bobby Jones Story," The AtlantaHistoryCenter.com, The Atlanta History Center, September 13, 2020, https://www.atlantahistorycenter.com/explore/exhibitions/fair-play-the-bobby-jones-story
2. "About Us," AtlantaHistoryCenter.com, The Atlanta History Center, September 13, 2020, https://www.atlantahistorycenter.com/explore/exhibitions/fair-play-the-bobby-jones-story
On the 115th anniversary of Bobby Jones' birthday, the Atlanta History Center in Atlanta, Georgia, honored Jones with the opening of the exhibition "Fair Play: The Bobby Jones Story" for his contributions to the City of Atlanta and the game of golf. The Atlanta History Center created the exhibition with the objective visitors and guest will "Discover the man who transcended sports during the Great Depression and became an American hero at a time when the nation most needed one" 1 The Atlanta History Center serves as the leading historical institution on the preservation and presentation of Atlanta and Southern history with the mission "through its collections, facilities, programs, exhibitions, and publications preserves and interprets historical subjects pertaining to Atlanta and its environs and presents subjects of interest to Atlanta's diverse audiences." 2 The Atlanta History Center's exhibition on Bobby Jones aligns with their mission because of the extensive relationship between Jones and the City of Atlanta, as Atlanta being his home town.
The Bobby Jones exhibition focuses on one of America's most famous athletes and is a topic that has a broad audience and has the ability to attract a general audience. The exhibition's central themes focus on Jones's personal life, his professional golf career, the development of the Augusta National Golf Club and the Master's tournament, and his relationship with St. Andrews. Jones's personal life is displayed through the exhibition but does not leave the audience with a great sense of knowing much about Jones' personal life. The exhibition features a timeline of Bobby Jone's life, but there are significant gaps in details for years throughout Jones' life. The exhibition also lacks in personal artifacts related directly to Bobby Jones, having most of the artifacts being secondary artifacts or replicas. The theme of Augusta National is less detailed than the other themes, even though the history of Augusta National is a popular topic. The exhibition could have featured more personal artifacts and behind the scene historical information on Augusta National's development. The exhibition could add an inside look to the Augusta Nation Country Club because of the exclusivity of actual visitation, which would help drive the exhibition. Augusta national should have been more in-depth discussed throughout the exhibition and held more artifacts related to the Masters' tournament. The theme of Jones' professional golf career is delightfully depicted considering the limited spacing of the exhibition. The exhibition creators were able to educate audience on the significant events of Jones's professional golf career and made emphasis on his historic achievements. The relationship Bobby Jones had with St. Andrews is accurately depicted throughout the exhibition. The exhibit has a section related solely to the relationship between Jones and St. Andrews. The St. Andrews section also has a collection of newspapers from a sub newspaper of the New York Times, Mid-Week Pictorial, that features Jones on the front page. The St. Andrews theme does a superb job of depicting the humanitarianism of Bobby Jones.
The Bobby Jones exhibition design matches its theme, an old school player, an old school look. The exhibition gives an old school contemporary appearance that lacks in color and stands out sections. The exhibition entrance is a black and white photo with little invitation to the exhibition. Although black and white photos can be appealing, they can also give the audience feelings of dullness. The entrance panel to the exhibit does not give great detail as to what the exhibit will feature, only opinion-based statements about the character of Bobby Jones, which does not give the audience a clear understanding of what they are about to view. The exhibition space is minimal compared to the three surrounding exhibitions at the Atlanta History Center, "Gather Around," "Turning Point," and "Black Citizenship in the Era of Jim Crow," Which limits the content able to be displayed in the exhibition. The exhibition's audio and visual components benefited by giving the audience information that could not be displayed. The exhibition featured three videos that complement the themes. The curators also use audience engagement with trivia games that depend on visitors' prior golf knowledge. Visitor engagement is an important concept when creating an exhibition because it offers the audience a chance to feel involved in their learning process.
The Bobby Jones exhibition helps to educate the general knowledge about the life of Jones and his influences on the game of golf. The exhibition offers information for the enhancement of public knowledge. Fair Play offers historical information about an important figure in American history. Golf is one of the most commonly played sports, but museum exhibits do not often feature golf exhibits. The Bobby Jones exhibition contributes to the expansion of the history of golf.
Fair Play demonstrates a unique use of small space and its curators' ability to encompass all the major themes of the topic. The Bobby Jones Story offers a unique look at the life of Bobby Jones from the perspective of his home town. The exhibition lacks original and direct artifacts of Bobby Jones and personal information regarding his life, but the shortcomings do not ultimately affect the exhibition's effectiveness. The Atlanta History Center does a fantastic job adequately telling the story of Bobby Jones.
1. "Fair Play: The Bobby Jones Story," The AtlantaHistoryCenter.com, The Atlanta History Center, September 13, 2020, https://www.atlantahistorycenter.com/explore/exhibitions/fair-play-the-bobby-jones-story
2. "About Us," AtlantaHistoryCenter.com, The Atlanta History Center, September 13, 2020, https://www.atlantahistorycenter.com/explore/exhibitions/fair-play-the-bobby-jones-story