Art That Breaks Every Barrier
Special Olympics
Smithsonian Natural History Museum
The Jurassic Goes Nostalgic
The Challenge
The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History was preparing to open Deep Time, its first major dinosaur exhibition in nearly two decades. The museum needed to reach two audiences with very different tastes: a new generation of kids and the adults who hadn't visited since the original exhibit closed in 2014. Boncom was asked to raise awareness and improve attendance, while creating a memorable story that would tie both audiences together.
The Insight
Dinosaurs hold a special place in everyone's imaginations. For children, they represent wonder, creativity, and discovery. For adults, they're deeply nostalgic. We realized the best way to reach both audiences wasn't to treat them separately, but instead to welcome everyone as kids, regardless of their age.
The Solution
We built the visual identity of the campaign around children's dinosaur drawings, which were messy, dynamic, and deeply emotional. The artwork brought both audiences together, inspiring kids to create while reminding adults of their own childhoods. Between dinosaur stuffed animals and the kids' artwork on the walls, everything pointed back to being a kid.
The Outcome
The campaign generated 7M+ impressions and onsite attendance rose 9.2%, reaching 880,479 visitors. Over 40,000 new visitors have returned to the exhibit every year since. The children's art ads were covered in The Washington Post and the Today show, while the campaign creative was cited in the peer-reviewed SAGE journal as a case for the power of nostalgia.
