MUSEUM
continued from page 1
Funding for the $14.4 million
structure was the First hurdle to clear.
The State of Oregon allocated $6.36
million in state-serviced bonds, and
the rest of the funding came from
private grants and donors, according
to the museum's Web site,
http://uoma.uoregon.edu/
index.html. Before the Oregon Leg
islature could release the bond mon
ey, the University had to secure the
private funding, which took longer
than expected.
Fong said world events such as the
Sept. 11 attacks may have affected
the flow of funds for the project.
"There were things that were out
of our control," he said.
Before any work could begin, mu
seum staff also had to meticulously
pack and move away more than
12,000 different pieces from the mu
seum's collection.
Groundbreaking for the project fi
nally took place in September 2002,
with an estimated 16-month con
struction time. But constructors still
had to grapple with other challenges
that slowed down the project. A big
concern was how to transform a
1932 building into a 21st century
state-of-the-art marvel.
"It presented a lot of challenges of
how do you attach a contemporary
building to an existing structure,"
Fong said.
Fong added that designers had to
be especially careful since the origi
nal building is listed on the Nation
al Register of Historic Places. Guide
lines on historic preservation had to
be followed during the refurbish
ment to retain the original build
ing's decorative elements and char
acter.
Fong said architects also had to
consider other aspects such as elec
tric and technical work. Adjust
ments had to be made so that the
original and new sections could op
erate in sync.
Danielle Hickey Photo Editor
The art museum has been under construction for almost two years. Plans to finally open it are set for October 2004.
Builders also had to deal with as
bestos, which was commonly used
in heating systems in the early part
of the century. "It all had to be han
dled as hazardous material," Fong
said, adding that as builders han
dled the asbestos removal, no other
construction could take place,
adding even more time to the con
struction schedule.
Museum Director David Turner
said the building went through sev
eral "change orders" as project man
agers constantly reevaluated what
needed to be done. Changing any
thing in the design requires consul
tation at different levels with the
University, museum officials, archi
tects, builders and even additional
consultants.
"1 know there was a consistent
manner of thinking that they want
ed to build this building right and
not cut corners," he said.
He estimates that the building
plans may have gone through as
"We're going to have
to get in there and do
an awful lot of work
really fast."
David Turner
Museum director
many as 100 different changes.
"That's normal for a project this
size," Turner said. "It's not unusual."
The museum's closure not only
prevented students from viewing its
impressive collections, but also af
fected them in other ways. Fine arts
graduate students used to have their
exhibitions at the museum, but have
had to look for alternative locations.
Art history students who, at times,
used the museum for their studies
also could not use it, Turi\er said. He
added that the museum Staff teach
es a museology class each year and
had to make do without the
museum's facilities when it was
closed.
The building is now twice its orig
inal size at more than 63,000 square
feet, according to its Web site.
Fong said builders are still finish
ing detailed interior work.
"This detail work is quite exact,
and for an art museum it needs to
be," Fong said. He added, for in
stance, the floors had to be level and
the lighting just right to allow for at
tractive artwork displays.
With the upcoming October open
ing date, staff members are busy
preparing to move back into the
structure. Turner said the staff was
originally supposed to have at least
one year to move back in, but delays
in the schedule have shortened that
time considerably.
"We're going to have to get in there
and do an awful lot of work really
fast," he said.
The museum, which is renowned for
MUSEUM TIMELINE
• 1932—The University Museum
of Art opens its doors. Building is
designed to accommodate a later
renovation.
• 1955 —Museum opens to
general public.
• October 2000 — Museum closes
to prepare for renovations.
• Sept. 10,2002
Groundbreaking ceremony for the
current renovation
• May 4,2004 — The University
announces the new name of the
museum will be the Jordan
Schnitzer Museum of Art
• May 8,2004 - The museum
holds an open hous
• October 2004 —Grand reopening
SOURCE: Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art
staff and Emerald Archives
its Asian art collections, will have two
special rooms dedicated to Korean art,
as well as new rooms for American and
Northwestern art and European art,
Turner said. Previously, the only collec
tion galleries were for arts from China
and Japan. The expanded museum will
also provide more space for changing
exhibitions.
Turner said despite the delays, the
new building will be "worth the wait."
Students are eagerly looking forward
to October.
Freshman Megan M. Johnson said
she is really curious to see what's inside
"I want it to open really badly," she
said. "Since I've been here it hasn't been
open."
Sophomore Erin Hallows had simi
lar sentiments.
"I've never been in it, but I'd want to,
especially since they've been working
on it since I've been here," she said.
Contact the news editor
at ayishayahya@dailyemerald.com.
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