Museum pushes into final stages before reopening date

CEDAR RAPIDS - Finishing touches take time when you're working on a 50,000-square-foot building.

With less than three months to go, artists, electricians and others are pushing ahead to meet the scheduled July 14 reopening date for the National Czech & Slovak Museum & Library.

“It's the last-minute things,” said museum spokeswoman Diana Baculis. “These are the finishing touches.”

Among those efforts is stenciled artwork in the Great Hall, the main entrance to the museum at 30 16th Ave. SW.

“It's exciting to do something in a museum,” said decorative artist Donna Slade of Dubuque, who designed the floral stencil used for a border for the Great Hall's massive arches.

Slade and Laura Feldermann of Galena, Ill., used a paint/plaster mixture this week to paint the embossed design in crimson red, cobalt blue, burgundy and antique gold, with a resulting fabric-like texture.

The pattern echoes the carpet in the neighboring banquet hall, which overlooks the Cedar River.

It was the swollen river that forced the museum to relocate to higher ground after the 2008 flood.

The nearly 17,000-square-foot museum was moved from the banks of the river and pivoted last summer, with the river-facing side becoming the front entrance. An addition was built and the building was elevated on a parking garage.

The museum now sits 11 feet higher than its previous elevation, or three feet above the 2008 flood level.

Baculis said Iowa's mild winter allowed exterior work to be completed ahead of schedule.

She noted that 70 to 80 subcontractors are working inside the building daily under general contractor Rinderknect Associates of Cedar Rapids.

Work is being completed on the kitchen; offices; a 55-seat theater for films and lectures; a 7,200-square-foot permanent exhibition room with 26-foot-high ceilings and the 5,500-square-foot library where the public will be able to conduct research in the museum's archives.

“Alphonse Mucha: Inspirations of Art Nouveau,” will be one of the featured exhibitions on opening day, with 230 paintings, sculptures and other items from the Czech art nouveau painter displayed.

Baculis said the museum will be the only site to feature the work, from Prague and London, in the United States. The exhibit is attracting interest from throughout the country.

Planning continues on the opening day ceremonies. Guests will include dignitaries from the Czech Republic and Slovakia, along with state and local officials.

“I can't wait until it's finished,” decorative artist Feldermann said of the museum. “It's absolutely beautiful. This is a really great thing for your area.”