On Wednesday, after years of false starts, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art finally broke ground in Los Angeles. While most ground-breaking ceremonies are momentous occasions, this one seemed exceedingly so, as the location and cost of the museum have been a matter of contentious debate (at one point the museum was to be located in Chicago or San Fransisco, and the amount for construction has been kept under wraps, with speculation that it's $1 billion). Funded and named after the famous filmmaker George Lucas, the museum will be located in Exposition Park. Not only is the plot of land home to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum (the University of Southern California's football stadium), but three other museums as well (the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, the California African American Museum, and the California Science Center).
The structure, which will be roughly 290,000 square feet, was designed by one of the most exciting young architects in the world, Ma Yansong of MAD Architects . The 43-year-old virtuoso has made a name for himself in the world of architecture for his stunning, neo-futuristic designs. Small wonder that the buildings he designed, such as the Harbin Opera House in China, caught the attention of the man who created the Star Wars franchise. In fact, the two seem a likely pair. In a 2016 interview with The New York Times , Yansong explained his love for movies. "When I graduated from high school, I thought I wanted to make science fiction movies, so I applied to film school, but I couldn’t get in," he explained. Now, his bold design will forever be associated with one of the leading visionaries in the world of sci-fi cinema.
A rendering of the lobby within the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art.
And much like the trilogies Lucas made his fortune from, his museum will resemble the otherworldly form of a spaceship. Inside, the futuristic façade will reportedly contain works of art by such American luminaries as Norman Rockwell, Frederic Church, and others. ( It's been rumored that Rockwell’s Shuffleton’s Barbershop , recently valued by Sotheby’s at $20 million to $30 million, might be part of the collection).
The museum will house both traditional works of art, such as paintings and sculptures, as well as non-traditional, such as comic books.
The Lucas museum, however, won't just house multimillion dollar works of traditional art. In an attempt to broaden the definition of museum-worthy art, the roughly 100,000-square-foot gallery space will feature movies, illustrations, and comic art. According to The Washington Post , "the museum purchased pages of original art from Alison Bechdel and her early “Dykes to Watch Out For” (1983) work, as well as from Fun Home (2006), and Are You My Mother? (2012).
Yet, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art isn't just about what's inside it's walls. The landscaping surrounding the museum, which totals 11 acres of former parking lots, will be a family-friendly space for festivals and outdoor film screenings, among other activities. The museum has an estimated completion date of 2021.
