“The crown jewel of the network of our nature centers.”
–Andrew Parker, Arkansas Game & Fish Commission (AGFC) Chairman
In Northwest Arkansas, hunting and fishing are woven into the fabric of the community. This new nature center aims to celebrate that tradition and to share it with a new, diverse generation of people. Through a variety of high and low-tech interactives and immersive environments, the displays explore seasonal change in the wildlife and habitats of Northwest Arkansas, showing how AGFC manages those habitats for the benefits of people and animals.
Visitors step across a digital stream that winds across the floor, sending up ripples and scattering a school of fish. The digital stream terminates in a real aquarium where people can see warm water fishery species such as smallmouth bass. Visitors can also enter the exhibition through a hallway entrance that is created to look like a karst cavern. Inside, the walls are covered with recreated rock and cave formations. Observant visitors might be able to spot replica bats, cave salamanders, or crickets.
Inside the exhibit gallery, visitors can explore and enjoy other themed environments and dioramas. Younger visitors can crawl through a bear den to come face to face with a taxidermy black bear. In the canopy overhead, birds flit by on large video screens.
Hands-on components such as a Laser Shot hunting simulation and a fishing interactive give visitors the chance to discover the joys of outdoor recreation.
Owner: Arkansas Game & Fish Commission
Designer/fabricator: Split Rock Studios
Winner, NAI Best Interior Exhibit, 2nd place
