The Battle of Brooklyn

Exhibition Design, Exhibition Development
& Project Management

Graphic Design: Marcela Gonzalez
Media: RBH Multimedia & Moey Inc.

September 23, 2016 - January 08, 2017

The Battle of Brooklyn was the largest battle of the Revolutionary War, as a major loss in American history, it’s been consistently excluded from written and oral history. The exhibition organized by Valerie Paley (Vice President and Chief Historian), and Jean Ashton (Senior Resources and Programs of the New-York Historical Society), detailed the sequence of events that unfolded, leading up to the day of the major battle of August 27th in 1776. The exhibit concludes with a brief overview of the day George Washington ordered his men to evacuate Brooklyn Heights, a day where American soldiers had to evacuate Brooklyn Heights under heavy weather conditions and a week of turbulent conflict. With the natural elements and climate of the New York Island playing an important role in the outcome of the battle, it naturally has a predominant emphasis in the design of the exhibition, which illustrates the untouched landscape of Manhattan and Brooklyn, as well as important landmarks of Manhattan, illustrated to help the audience familiarize with the artwork. The Battle of Brooklyn included over 90 objects and documents, including Hugh Gain’s Declaration of Independence, Thomas Paine’s Common Sense and a portrait of George Washington painted by John Trumbull. Interactive narrative media elements were also added in order to animate the 24-hour period leading up the retreat.

Photos courtesy of Glenn Castellano