Museum renovations coming along
May 23—The Ellen Noël Art Museum recently received some big items for its renovation such as a revolving door and an elevator, a screen wall, 37-foot columns, horizontal support pieces and vertical slats.
The renovation is 68 percent complete, Project Manager Steve Patton said.
Construction crews were also pouring concrete for the museum's decorative front drive. Additional landscaping will be added.
If there is no bad weather and no back orders on materials, construction could be complete at the end of August. Any delays will push it back to September, Patton said.
Groundbreaking on the renovations was in September 2023 and more than 8,000 square feet will be added and a second floor for administrative offices.
Board member Nancy Boles said the re-opening gala will be Dec. 4.
The galleries will be 68 degrees, 43% humidity, 24 hours a day, 365 days out of the year, Patton said.
"That way, we maintain the utmost perfect conditions environmentally for the art that's going to be displayed. To be certified for the Smithsonian and several of our big lenders, renters, where we do get art, they require that type of a climate condition for their art so that it will be preserved," Patton said.
The galleries will have RGB (red, green and blue) LED lighting so the colors can change based on the exhibit, or it can just be white. The lights can also be dimmed or brightened. If it contrasts with the art, the lights can be turned off or have a little bit of color.
"There are a lot of options that we'll be able to do with that particular lighting mechanism and I think that's so cool," Patton said.
He added that he has never seen anything similar at another museum.
"There will also be a media gallery where they can display electronic, digital, anything ... that is computer generated. We have data and electricity lines in the floor. The floor conduit goes to a room that's right behind that wall," Patton said.
Any type of control center or any electronic art can be in that area.
One of the most important factors for an art museum is wall space, he said.
"The space that you have on the floor, square-footage wise, is good. But most importantly, you want wall space for your displays. As you can see, all the electrical plugs are on your baseboards, so we can free up the wall space for more displays and flexibility. Also, we can bring in temporary walls" that can add to the space, Patton said.
The renovation is adding more than 8,000 square feet to the building, plus a second floor that will have administrative offices.
There is one wall that will have The Stampede mural on it, the one that used to be in the Post Office in downtown Odessa by artist Tom Lea.
There will also be an events area/community room for special events, weddings, banquets and classes, Patton said. There will also be space to allow for two classrooms or one large open space.
"We've done quite a bit of improvements to the garden area. Those retaining walls or seat walls, the holes that you see are going to be lighting. This will be an upper deck, and you'll step down onto a lower deck to have bistro tables out there in this area for people" who want to look at the art, Patton said.
"We've got a really cool mural that's going to be placed on that west wall over here, and that little door right there, it's a coat closet. That's pretty cool," he added.
The mural will be 12 feet by 3 feet. Created by San Antonio artist Diana Kersey, it will be donated to the museum.
There will be a warming kitchen specifically for catering and large events and a monitor to display upcoming events and advertisements among other items. There will be space for food trucks to pull in.
When previous museum director Shelia Perry asked him to help with the project management, Patton said he saw the plans and he was in.
He added that he thought "that's going to be a landmark like none other in this area.
"They chose the architectural features from several museums from around the world. You might see a little bit of the Guggenheim, a little bit of the European style of architecture with the big curved wall in front."
Phase I is fully funded and there will be a Phase II that includes a second-story covered entrance and a deck over the drive through.
Patton said they are under budget by about $600,000 as of May 12.
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