"Strata" by Dixie Friend Gay is a 700 square feet vertical installation in a public stairway. Composed of hand-made ceramic tiles, smalti, cast glass, granite, and marble. The stairway and lobby evoke the feeling of being inside the earth. The layers are embedded with hand-made fossils, precious stones, amber, oil, and water. The public art installation gives a nod to the importance of oil exploration and the concentration of oil-related businesses in The Woodlands.