To that end, Gauci reversed the usual traffic pattern through the museum's special exhibition galleries, starting viewers at the north rather than the south end of the complex. While they're waiting on the balcony, they'll be able to read a time line designed by Elisabeth Paymal of Ann Arbor and to pick up Acoustiguides for audio tours. The designer scaled the 11 galleries with dadoes, waist-high moldings meant to provide more intimate spaces for the modestly sized drawings and paintings, the largest of which is 36 by 29 inches. He cut through an eastern wall to change the proportions of the rooms and allow for a better traffic flow.
Every room has a didactic panel that covers the area as well as the work that went on there.
The color changes with each different territory, reflecting the changes in light from north to south. Since he joined the museum staff in 1984, Gauci has designed some 70 special exhibitions, earning the Detroit museum an international reputation for outstanding presentation. After the Van Gogh show he'll go on his own, devoting more time to architecture and doing projects for the Detroit museum on a consulting basis.