Looking to snap a photo for an updated profile picture? Want to see some strange, out-there things? Ohio is home to museums that are as off-the-wall as they are out-of-the-way.
Bioluminescent Beauty
Look no farther than Otherworld in east Columbus for a surreal immersive art installation. Tour on your own the 32,000 square feet of interactive art, mixed reality sets and hidden passages. With 47 rooms of art by more than 40 artists, there’s plenty to explore.
The premise of Otherworld is unique, to say the least.
“You have volunteered as a beta tester at Otherworld Industries, a pioneering tech company specializing in alternate realm tourism,” the website says. “But upon arrival at the desolate research facility, you’re left on your own. … Exploring restricted laboratories inevitably leads you to discover a gateway to bioluminescent dreamscapes featuring alien flora, primordial creatures and expanses of abstract light and geometry.”
A Close Shave
The National Barber Museum and Hall of Fame in Canal Winchester preserves and promotes the history of its particular profession.
The museum was established in 1988 by Ed Jeffers, former president of the Ohio Barber Board and former CEO of the National Association of Barber Boards. Transport back in time to behold the beautifully preserved collections of shaving mugs, barber poles, cushiony chairs and more.
The museum also holds peculiarly fascinating objects that are not often associated with barbering.
“The most unique things that we have are the bloodletting tools,” says museum director Mike Ippoliti. “The barbers were also the surgeons and dentists way back.”
While visiting, be sure to stop by the museum’s hall of fame, which has recently gone international by featuring a Cuban barber.
Channeling History
Ever wondered how technology progressed to your flat-screen Roku TV?
Check out the Early Television Foundation and Museum’s collection of televisions, from mechanical sets to early electronic and postwar TVs.
Founded in 2001, the Hilliard-based museum now holds more than 200 televisions in eight rooms. The foundation is proud to showcase its most popular television: a custom-made 1960s German Kuba Komet.
“(Our purpose is) to preserve one of the greatest inventions of our time,” says Larry McIntyre, an attendant at the museum, “from the mechanical sets of the 1920s all the way up to your first sets of color TVs in the 1950s to where we’re at today.”
Building Blocks
The Brick Museum, located in Bellaire, is an unofficial museum of LEGO masterpieces. Founded in 2007, it encompasses 12 rooms with more than 40 LEGO sculptures.
Its most popular sculpture is the Guinness Book of World Records’ largest LEGO image. This mosaic of LEGOs was built by the museum staff and about 250 children. Depicting an image of a tractor trailer designed by Brian Korte, the piece measures about 536 by 234 inches and contains 1.2 million bricks.
The museum also has interactive areas for visitors to create their own sculptures and is open seasonally from May through September.
It’s a Sign
For a deep history of American signage, head to Cincinnati and check out the American Sign Museum. The museum displays nearly 100 years of signage, from antique to modern and wooden to neon.
“Signs and sign making are a fascinating reflection of America through the years,” says founder Tod Swormstedt. “If your experience at the American Sign Museum causes you to be more aware of signs in your travels and of their value to businesses and communities, we’ve done our job.”
Swallow your Fears
Stop by the Allen County Museum in Lima to check out its collection of items swallowed by people.
“There was a doctor here in town that actually had to retrieve these items from people,” says a museum representative. “Many of them were people that were in jail. Others were private patients that he saw.”
From chicken bones to safety pins and chains to dentures, this collection holds more than 100 objects Dr. Estey Yingling and son Dr. Walter “Bud” Yingling dislodged from patients’ throats and stomachs.
The museum also boasts historical homes, a Model T Roadster and an albino animal display.
Sarah Grace Smith is a contributing writer. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.