Dinos in Motion at the Ontario Science Centre

A couple days ago I went to the Ontario Science Centre, a science museum on Toronto's east side. It's a pretty nice museum if I say so myself; and concerning recent political events caused by Ontario's premeir, deserves to stay where it is and be spared from conservatives. But mostly I came to visit one temporary exhibit, that's pertinent to my own interests.

Dinos(saurs) in Motion is that one a travelling exhibition from the mind of Imagine Exhibitions and late artist John Payne, about kinetic scupltures of dinosaurs, some of which are borderline robots thanks to being interactive via levers and stering wheels attached to pullies. It has been set up in the Science Centre's atrium, with a fairly minimal setup.

The species lineup for the exhibit, going clockwise, goes:
  • Ornithomimus and Struthiomimus
  • Plesiosaurus
  • Diplodocus
  • Deinonychus
  • Ouranosaurus
  • Gastornis
  • Parasaurolophus
  • Ankylosaurus
  • Tyrannosaurus
  • Pachycephalosaurs (I think they have no signage and thus don)
  • Whooping Crane and American Crow
It's a decent genus lineup with a few unexpected ones to stand out among the many Stock genera. The incorporation of birds into it is also pretty nice. It's almost expected for recent palaeo-media in the last ten or so to incorporate birds in some way, and I'm all for it.

Now for a photo gallery of each genera in question for clarity.

So what do I think of Dinos in Motion? While only a single atrium, and relatively barebones in execution, it's pretty good.

Although plenty of signage is about palaeontology (including one about dinosaur feathers by the Deinonychus), the exhibit is more about the art of technology, with the signage listing various mechanics like pullies and metalworking. I was not aware of it beforehand, though it is neat an idea, using dinosaurs to lure in visitors to use as a framework to teach other topics in that STEAM cirruculum.
While on the subject, AMNH palaeontologist Mark Norell is featured on one video, explaining various stuff, like how birds are dinosaurs. I liked it even if I didn't stay long enough to watch more then a few seconds of it.

I won't beat around the bush: the exhibit can be quite creepy. They way the animated models jerk around making metal squeaking due to the pullies used for the kinetics. Just look at the Ornithomimus in motion themselves for example.

However, I've seen images of the exhibit before online, and they seemed to usually be in darker rooms that give the mood a rather creepy mood that fits the designs. The large windows of the atrium do not help with that, instead making them come off as less so. Though admittedly it can't be too scary for visitors, so it's only a minor complaint and if anything helps. Overall, I like the designs of the dinosaurs here. The cast metal parts are enough like actual fossils, not just generic shapeless blobs of metal that look aesthetically fine.

That said, apparently the exhibition debuted at least in the 2000's if I'm correct, so while accuracy is obviously not the main priority versus artistry, there are some errors in the designs. The lack of belly ribs is the most obvious. I juat wanted to point things out, as I'm not too bothered by it.

And if you're asking, no, the Ontario Science Centre doesn't have much in the way of fossils on display. At most there used to be a Lamberosaurus skull in one corridor as part of a display on deep time, and in the Living Earth exhibit there is a megathere skull from the Royal Ontario Museum, but otherwise I believe that's it. I love the science centre, but it's clear the ROM bears the most bones on display in the GTA (besides maybe Prehistoria Museum & SkullStore - but that might for another day).
The skull in question
  • Presentation - 9/10
  • Species Variety - 8/10
  • Theming - 5/10
  • Interpretives - 8/10
  • Exhibit Design - 8/10
  • Accuracy - 6/10
Dinos in Motion is a pretty nice little exhibition. I hope you can see it over the holidays while you still can, it's only on until January 7, unless you have seen or can do so at other venues. And try to support the museum in any way you can.

Thank you for reading. And enjoy the holidays.

See Also

Location: 770 Don Mills Rd., North York, ON M3C 1T3, Canada

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