The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts - “Gold Mountain: Chinese California Stories” Gallery Renovation

Exploring the Chinese American Experience in California

Opened in 1998, the California Museum is an official state history museum with the mission to educate and enlighten visitors about California’s rich history through interactive experiences. Located in downtown Sacramento, the Project consists of a 3,000 square foot gallery renovation within the existing museum’s first floor. This renovation accommodates new exhibit space that celebrates the stories of Chinese Californians and their important contributions to California’s economy, diversity, governance, and culture.

HGA worked with the Museum to design a solution that reflects the stated needs, program, and code requirements consistent with the existing fit and finish of the facility. Our scope of services included the review and input to cost estimates prepared by the Owner, and leading efforts in submitting to the Division of the State Architect (DSA) for access review and the State Fire Marshal (SFM) for fire, life safety review and approvals. The Project is grant-funded, and the work will take place using independent contractors through a delegation of authority from the Department of General Services (DGS), which owns and operates the building using a design-bid-build project delivery model.

The new Gold Mountain exhibit explores how Chinese immigrants came to California in search of a better life, then stayed and helped to build the modern state. The exhibit details the history of Chinese Americans in California from the 1840s to the present through a display of historic artifacts and photographs, accompanied by interactive video stations, games and activities.