[ Music plays ] Narrator: Capitol buildings are more than just a place for politicians to gather.

They're also repositories of history and art, crucial to a state's identity.

The New Jersey State House opened in 1792, just two years after New Jersey's capital was moved from Perth Amboy to Trenton.

From the very beginning, it was a symbol of democracy.

Docent: So, the state bought 3 1/2 half acres from various businesspeople and sited this building on a bluff overlooking the Delaware River, so no matter how you came into town, you saw democracy.

[ Music plays ] Narrator: As more space was needed, the State House began to grow.

Around it, the city of Trenton expanded.

Today, the Capitol Complex is part of the city, not set off on grounds of its own.

And like any old house, the State House is a work in progress.

Recent renovations made the building safer and restored its original glory.

Way: The first time I actually came into the building was when I served as a county commissioner in Passaic.

And similar to today, you're just in awe.

You walk around, you see the intricacy, right?

And detailing and architecture.

You see all the exquisite artwork and you say to yourself, "Wow, this is the people's house."

This is history, where it's made.

Present-day decisions and future decisions.

Murphy: From voting rights to LGBTQ+ rights... Narrator: Many governors give their big speeches in the Assembly Chamber.

On other days, it's business as usual for the House of Representatives.

Man: Assemblywoman Lopez moves the bill.

Narrator: The Senate Chamber is where the state senate meets.

It has an elaborate glass oculus surrounded by lunettes -- allegorical paintings focused on New Jersey's history and industries.

Freeman: Those were created by William Brantley Van Ingen.

He started at a very obvious artistic standpoint, which is the state seal.

He took the two women that are in the state seal of New Jersey, Liberty and Prosperity, and used them as his muses.

[ Music plays ] So, as you look around the room, some of those images are represented by Liberty.

They tend to be wartime efforts that have helped to make New Jersey free.

Then there's also images that are represented by Prosperity, and they tend to be industries that you can find throughout the state.

There's only one in the room that actually is not represented by one of the two women in the state seal, and it represents machinery and industry.

The artist at the time could not even imagine, I guess, having Liberty and Prosperity in those spaces, so there is a man that represents that one industry.

Narrator: The last major building in the Capitol Complex, the State House Annex, was finished by 1931.

It was filled with art, including murals and stained glass.

Even the exterior doors, made of bronze, are embellished with details of New Jersey's story.

It would be many years before art on this scale would be made for the State House again.

[ Music plays ] Freeman: Really, in the 1990s is when we saw a pretty significant influx of artwork into the State House Complex.

Those were brought in largely due to massive renovations that occurred in the State House Annex, as well as in the State House Chambers.

We saw installations of marquetry by artists like Hiroshi Murata.

"New Jersey: A 360-Degree View" by J. Kenneth Leap was added to the State House Annex.

And large paintings that were put in throughout the complex, and those all really happened in the early 1990s into the early 2000s.

Narrator: A 1999 painting of the State House by Robert Birmelin captures spectators and protesters, lobbyists and guards.

It's a picture of the energy in the building when both the House and the Senate are in session.

O'Reilly: People don't think about that.

They think of this very wonderful, beautiful, intimidating building, but it's an office building.

It's where things are happening all the time.

Yeah, people are fighting, and rightly so, because democracy isn't easy.

It's not pretty.

Lawmaker: It's another business-killing bill in a day of business-killing bills.

Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

O'Reilly: But it's all cloaked in this history that's all around us, because we know the people who came here before us.

We know that Woodrow Wilson was in this building, and we know that Governor Livingston, the first governor when New Jersey became New Jersey.

Narrator: Portraits fill the State House -- the New Jersey signers of the Declaration of Independence and the former governors.

In the 20th century, the governor's portraits became larger and more about them as people.

O'Reilly: Obviously, Governor Christine Todd Whitman's portrait stands out because she's the only woman to date.

I love that portrait of her.

And it's, again, a very direct portrait, just like she was.

She was a pleasure to work with.

Narrator: In Margaret's role as the executive director of the New Jersey State Museum, she's worked with many outgoing governors on their official portraits.

O'Reilly: Governor Christie's portrait is unusual in that it's the only one with a podium in it.

A lot of us remember him standing in front of that podium giving very long press conferences.

Christie: Well, good afternoon, everybody.

Thank you for being here.

O'Reilly: The other thing interesting about the podium is that there's a very small Easter egg in it.

It says "S.T.T.S.," "stronger than the storm," because he was the governor during Superstorm Sandy.

Narrator: Margaret also helps select artwork from the State Museum's collection for some of the executive offices at the State House, including for the lieutenant governors.

Way: Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune.

It fills my heart because, you know, as an African American woman, especially during the time she lived, was able to be an educator, a leader, someone who championed women's rights and voting rights.

And she just continues to inspire me in my work.

I was thankful that the museum afforded the opportunity for her to be showcased here.

Narrator: At the New Jersey State House, the past is always present.

Governors make their speeches near a portrait of Lincoln, who spoke there in 1861 under a chandelier lit by Edison light bulbs.

The State House is a workplace, but the art of the State House reminds us that the work, messy as it gets, has a lofty mission.

It's the art of democracy.