The New Orleans Museum has completed a renovation of a cultural space called the Lapis Center for the Arts.
The renovation began in January 2020. The space will serve film screenings, lectures, theater and dance performances and more. It features surround sound, theatrical lighting and accommodates seating for up to 360 people.
The renovation was funded mostly by the Zemurray Foundation which has supported many of the museum’s operations and projects. NOMA director Susan Taylor said the space will provide opportunities for the visual and performing arts and allow the museum to expand its offerings.
On the walls of the Lapis Center is Enrique Alférez’s monumental plaster relief mural, “Symbols of Communication.” Alférez completed the mural in 1967 for the lobby of the Times-Picayune building. It was given to NOMA by investors and developers Joe Jaeger, Barry Kern, Michael White and Arnold Kirschman, who are turning the site of the building into a Drive Shack golf entertainment venue.