It was with mounting excitement that we watched the construction of the new spaces. We've made the process public, sharing images and personal responses from the staff involved on our Brought to Light blog. Gone are the series of staggered walls that previously determined the visitor's journey through the collection; in their place are a series of spaces designed to encourage a sense of flow, drama and anticipation. We've pored over the diagrams and the scale models, but it's not until you stand in the middle of the huge new central arcade that you begin to truly appreciate the new space.

However, the structural changes are only part of the story; it's on the gallery walls, and indeed floors, that things really start to get interesting. Well before the first painting came down in July, the curators were already re-imagining the collection. What stories do we want to tell, and how do we want to tell them? In many ways Brought to Light is, with the exception of all the label writing and logistical problems it generates, a curator's dream-start from scratch and create a bespoke gallery.

And this new gallery is designed around conversations. At its heart is the constant conversation, alluded to in the exhibition's title, between light and dark that characterises any large collection-which works will be brought forth into the light of the public eye, and which will rest in the comparative dark of the collection storerooms, plan chests and Solander boxes? With over 6,000 works in the collection, this presents hard choices, but also exciting opportunities. Also important are the conversations between contemporary and historical art, and between Māori and Pākehā art, carried out across the spine of the central arcade and through the series of themed rooms that lead off it. This more thematic model is a big leap forward from the previous, linear approach. As senior curator Justin Paton says: ‘Stretching from the historical spaces at one end to the contemporary spaces at the other, this arcade is a palpable expression of our belief that art's past and its present should be in live conversation with each other.'

The doors are open again, and Brought to Light is open to visitors. This is your invitation to come in and explore. Many of the collection stalwarts are still on display, but we hope that within this show you'll also find new favourites, and see the collection in a whole new light.