As Nicole and I are continuing our work on labels for the new galleries, we have been checking in on construction progress and would like to share some information with you. Many changes have been made since our last update and the new galleries are really taking shape.

One step closer to finishing, light tracks and walls are being installed.

In the construction zone, walls are going up, the elevator is being installed, and the areas with built-in cases are shaping up. Over the past few weeks, DOMA staff, exhibition design consultant Charles Froom, Nicole, and I have had various meetings to test locations and sizes for thematic labels that will appear in each gallery space. We are all excited to move forward in with the plans, continuing the process of finalizing decisions.

Here is the area where the new elevator will be installed, improving safety and security for moving large works of art.

One part of the construction process that takes particular finesse is the installation of plaster moldings throughout the new galleries. Not often utilized in construction anymore, finding skilled plasterers who are able to construct the moldings is no easy task. In fact, there are only a few people in the state who have been trained in plaster work and are expert enough for working in historic buildings like the Fine Arts Building.

Here you can see part of the process of transforming plaster into crown moldings. The plasters first mix up the plaster. Then they apply the wet material to the top of the walls and drag their tool along the corner where the wall and ceiling meet to form the beautiful detail work of the crown molding.

Here is a detail of the moldings, and as you can see they leave the corners until the end. The plasterers told us corners are the most difficult part and can take all day just to complete a few corners and do them properly.

As progress continues, we look forward to sharing more stories and photographs of the new galleries with you.