PHOTOS: Orlando Museum of Art receives $750K state grant for repairs

(Photo by Paige Bright)

ORLANDO | Members, curators and ambassadors of the Orlando Museum of Art gathered for a ceremonial check presentation of $750,000 on Sept. 16.

The funding is part of state support provided to the museum to assist with renovations to its air-handling system and repairs to water-damaged areas.

During the half-hour ceremony, audience members listened to speeches by the museum CEO Cathryn Mattson, Senator Jason Brodeur and Representative Erika Booth.

“It’s in the state’s best interest to make sure this is in for your place, because it’s not just some place right off 17-92. It’s not just Orlando or Central Florida. This is a destination for the entire state,” Brodeur says. “And that is the compelling reason why the State of Florida should be involved as many times as members as we could ask in projects that really always show or serve a local community”

Renovations to the museum started over a year ago, with construction on the roof. The museum is steadily pushing forward with renovations, now taking a look at internal repairs, none of which could be done without this grant.

“It is so important to our long-range stability and sustainability,” Mattson says. “This grant was for the HVAC replacement, which has to be fine-tuned, and to keep the art right, and just making repairs that have been passed over the years by the intrusions of the water.”

Above all, each speaker reminded the audience just how important the arts are for the Orlando community.

“The arts are vital,” Booth says. “To the culture of our region, the space where we can be able to learn, and investment in this area is more than just what’s happening within the walls here. It’s within the entire region’s reputation for this facility.”

Renovations are expected to begin as soon as possible, but will not affect the hours of the museum being open. Galleries will be moved around to fit with the schedule of contractors and active repairs. A timeline of the renovations is also not finalized, but will begin with the larger and more critical repairs.

“The big stuff, the critical stuff, is going to be done by the end of the spring, but this is the beginning of really refurbishing the museum. It needs that,” Mattson says. “Every building needs to be kept up and changed over time. We want to make this just a really first-class experience for anybody who walks in the door. It never ends. I wish I could say it ends, but it never ends.”

Founded in 1924, the museum presents 10 to 12 exhibitions yearly and is “distinguished not only by the depth of its collections but by its unwavering commitment to accessibility, learning, and creative exploration,” according to OMA’s website.

For more information on current exhibits and to purchase tickets OMAart.org.

Watermark Out News attended the ceremonial check presentation. View our photos below.

Photos by Ana Ferreira Lizama and Paige Bright.