Hoover Dam Star Map Restoration Slowly Restarting
August 2024 photo of the new cement underlayment (Photo courtesy of David Muse).
It's now been almost three full years since restoration work began on Oskar J. W. Hansen's Hoover Dam terrazzo "Star Map" and over four and a half years since tourists last saw the artwork before COVID lockdowns. Limited work has restarted in the last few months, but it's still unclear whether there is a plan for a path forward, leaving an important piece of public art out of sight and in limbo.
Our "Save the Star Map" Campaign
Conflict between the original restoration contractor and government employees overseeing the project stalled the initial restoration right after the terrazzo masterpiece was removed from the Dam in 2022. By 2023 our fears that the destroyed artwork might never be repaired led us to launch our "Save the Star Map" campaign. That campaign resulted in strong media attention from Las Vegas area TV and newspaper reports, but saw little progress by the Bureau of Reclamation ("BOR").
New Concrete Foundation
Finally, this spring, a new cement contractor was hired to finish construction of a new underlayment for the Star Map. Unfortunately it appears that even that work has been slow and over the last few months there's been no additional work beyond pouring a few inches of concrete.
Monument Plaza at the dam remains barricaded to tourists and Oskar Hansen's demolished Star Map is still missing.
Terrazzo Plans Unclear
But since there is now some modest sign of progress, we're hopeful that the BOR will continue moving forward with its original restoration plans, which now require artists to begin the intricate process of rebuilding Oskar's brass-inlaid terrazzo designs; designs that required over 200,000 manual stellar calculations by Oskar, the US Navy, and the Smithsonian to display with precision the alignment of the stars at the exact moment of the Dam's dedication by President Roosevelt in 1935, placed on the dial of a 26,000-year cosmic "clock."
The BOR's project manager has remained vague about the project's new timeline and given all the prior cancellations and delays over the course of this project, we're still concerned whether or when this important artwork will be seen again.
Ensuring the Future of the Star Map
Our “Save the Star Map” campaign continues to push for transparency and action. You can help by staying informed, spreading the word, and advocating for the preservation of this vital cultural work. Together, we can ensure that the Star Map, like the dam itself, stands as a symbol of human achievement for years to come.
