The extension of the building created a larger exhibition space, a storage facility for the artwork, an unloading platform and an office wing with a separate entrance. The largest exhibition hall was named after the Polish painter, Jan Matejko. Another room is named after Gabriel Narutowicz, the first president of the Second Polish Republic, who was assassinated at Zachęta on 16 December 1922 by Eligiusz Niewiadomski, a Polish painter and critic. To commemorate the president and Wojciech Gerson, one of the founders of the Society for the Encouragement of Fine Arts, two plaques were revealed during the gallery's anniversary celebrations in 2000.