New London ― Cheers rang out over the hum of air compressors as Mark Milanick tossed the final basketball onto his target.

The New London resident was not wearing athletic gear but instead a button-down shirt. And he was not in a gym but a museum.

Milanick was one of a dozen docents, community volunteers and staff members who gathered Tuesday to install Lyman Allyn Art Museum’s newest piece, “Basketball Pyramid,” by artist David Huffman. They followed the artist’s blueprints and instructions as they constructed the pyramid with 650 balls in 12 layers. The sound of two air compressors filled the otherwise empty room as each ball was inflated one by one.

“I don’t know if I’m the lucky one or the tall one,” he said of his job placing the last of the balls on top of the colorful piece.

The piece is part of “Personal to Political: Celebrating the African American Artists of Paulson Fontaine Press,” the traveling exhibition presenting the vision and personal narratives of African American artists from around the country. The traveling show features 46 fine art prints by 17 different artists, along with the optional pyramid installation.

The fine art prints in the exhibition ― which runs at the New London museum from Oct. 13 to Jan. 5 ― were produced at the Paulson Fontaine Press in Berkley, Calif. The press opened in 1997 and for 25 years has worked with a diverse group of artists to amplify underrepresented voices in the visual arts.

The exhibition was organized by Bedford Gallery at the Lesher Center for the Arts in California. The Lyman Allyn is the first tour venue to include the Basketball Pyramid as part of the exhibition.

“This is probably a once in a lifetime thing” said Jane LeGrow, registrar and director of exhibitions at Lyman Allyn. “I will almost certainly never have to order 650 basketballs again as part of my job.”

LeGrow said the piece combines the pyramid and the basketballs as symbols of power ― and the balance of power.

The pyramid represents a classical structure that was constructed with exploited workers, she said. She also pointed to a sense in some communities of the exploitation of professional athletes.

“It also asks how does that connect with people’s dreams and hopes as well,” she said.

Huffman in his artist statement said both symbols are rooted in Blackness and Black ideology.

“Intersecting the basketball with the pyramid challenges the historical manipulations against black invention and reestablishes a lost connection,” he wrote.

Following the conclusion of the exhibition, the 650 basketballs used in the pyramid will be donated to local recreation centers, youth groups, and schools in New London.

“Part of the artist’s intent is to build community, and it’s built into the instructions,” said LeGrow.

s.gordon@theday.com