Easton, Pennsylvania

Dry-erase hippo lets kids make their mark at popular interactive museum

• Created a hippo play structure for the museum’s extensive renovation
• Designed it to feature a dry-erase surface that encourages kids to share their creativity
• Crafted the playful hippo from durable material that will stay strong for years

Challenge

Crayola wanted to celebrate its 110^th birthday by renovating and expanding its popular interactive museum, the Crayola Experience. Since the museum focuses on providing exhibits that inspire creativity, any new play structures would need to spark young imaginations and withstand heavy kid traffic. 

Solution

The 4 Kids’ team designed and constructed a friendly hippo with a dry-erase “skin.” The large surface—5.5’ long and more than 2.5’ wide—gives young artists a big canvas for their creativity, whether they’re scrawling “Aiden was here” or doodling a cartoon.

Because the Crayola Experience hosts hundreds of thousands of visitors each year, we built the custom play sculpture with super-sturdy glass fiber reinforced polymer (GFRP). Not only can kids write and draw on the hippo, they can safely crawl and play on it too.

Result

The unique dry-erase hippo gives children a fun outlet for their creativity. It’s durable enough to withstand everything from scribbling to climbing, ensuring it will be a memory-making part of the museum for many years.

Next Step

What will make your museum, exhibit, or attraction the kind of place kids can’t wait to get back to? If you can dream it, our team will build it. Let’s talk!

To see the individual product used in this project, click on the link below:

Sunken Hippo