While Mom led the color and finish palette, Smith worked on making David happy. “The hardest part was making his art fit and getting the lighting right,” Smith says.

The next challenge: convincing the couple to cover the space’s stunning Honduran mahogany flooring with carpet for acoustics—just one month after it was installed.

He prevailed and offered an olive branch in exchange: The gleaming wood floor would remain in the gallery, which now showcases much of David’s artfully illuminated artwork, sculpture and taxicab models. Smith ensured that the gallery’s woodworking would match the mahogany perfectly.

In addition to providing the design and architectural build-out services, Smith’s company took on the role of general contractor, overseeing the electrical, plumbing, fabrication and installation details. Walls were moved and removed, a window was closed in from the interior side, the HVAC system was reconfigured, and the theater was constructed as a room-within-a-room for acoustical purposes.

The luggage closet was relocated to accommodate the L-shaped gallery that’s 28 feet long and 9 feet wide; the original bath The theater chairs—double-cushioned and wrapped in a Belgian fire-rated velvet—feature reclining, heating and massage mechanisms. Each is equipped with power, data and phone jacks so Tracy can review her photography on-screen and create slide shows.

While the couple summered in Vermont, Smith’s team rebuilt the space and installed the theater in six weeks. Every piece was custom made and preassembled in full in Smith’s mammoth facility to ensure a perfect fit.

When the Markins saw the finished theater, Tracy grabbed the remote, pressed “theater on” and started channel surfing. “David wasn’t happy until it was finished.,” she says. “Now he thinks it’s the greatest thing.”

“I was shocked,” David says. “Everything was displayed perfectly, including the art. It came together quietly and neatly.”

Says Smith: “The renderings didn’t capture the theater’s magic. The clients didn’t really understand it until it was done.” Not surprisingly, the couple has not set foot in a commercial movie theater in several years. They’d rather stay home.