Tim Lee is the Director of Exhibitions at the Natural History Museum of Utah, where he’s been for the past two decades—long enough, he jokes, to be considered part of the museum’s permanent collection. Tim helped lead the design and construction of NHMU’s permanent exhibitions and now oversees traveling exhibits, gallery renovations, and original in-house productions like Nature All Around Us and Climate of Hope. His work blends science, storytelling, and community collaboration into immersive, hands-on experiences that spark curiosity and wonder.

He’s committed to user-centered design and believes natural history museums should be social spaces where curiosity leads the way, and visitors see themselves as scientists. Whether he’s prototyping a digital interactive or wrangling animals to be filmed and projected into a diorama, Tim is always looking to innovate and create experiences where a visitor is inspired, learns something unforgettable, and feels excited to explore more of the natural world.

Prior to joining the museum, he was the senior designer for 99IC architecture in Milan, Italy, where his projects included branded environments for retail spaces, wayfinding systems for public areas, and exhibits for La Triennale di Milano. He also worked as a freelance designer, conceptualizing and developing exhibits for the Enga Take Anda Cultural Centre in Papua New Guinea, the Idaho Potato Museum, and, most recently, the Antelope Island Visitor Center. Tim’s passion for design extends into education, and he’s a frequent lecturer and guest speaker at the University of Utah and other local colleges.