North House

In the fall of 1996, the Charthouse was designed and the construction began soon afterwards.  By April of 1997, the exterior of the building along with the bones of the three surrounding gardens, the Charthouse, Spalding, and Williamsburg gardens were completed.   In early 1998, the studio was wired, plumbed, and sheet rocked.  From that point on, hundreds of hours have been devoted to painting the mural on the ceiling, detail paintings on the floors, intricate woodwork, faux painted walls, a huge mural across the interior eastern wall, and a magic staircase that descends from the heavens of the arbor-like painted ceiling.

 

Dr. Briggs's favorite part of the studio tour is to press a button at which point the opening fanfare to the 1996 Olympics begins as the staircase from the ceiling descends from the crystal blue skies.  What a show stopper!