Copyright Deadline
Despite many construction challenges since breaking ground in March 2018—including delays due to the COVID-19 pandemic—the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is now scheduled to open its doors on September 22, 2026. Located in Los Angeles’s Exposition Park, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art is a sprawling 11-acre campus designed to be a new cultural hub. The project features a 300,000-square-foot building by Ma Yansong of MAD, with Mia Lehrer (Studio-MLA) overseeing the expansive new green spaces. Stantec served as the executive architect. The facility includes galleries, two theaters, a library, a restaurant, a café, a retail store, and dedicated community areas. In July, George Lucas made his first-ever appearance at San Diego Comic-Con International, joining a panel with filmmaker Guillermo del Toro to discuss the future of the museum. Lucas described the institution as “a temple to the people’s art.” The museum’s foundation stems from Lucas’s personal need to house and display his massive, 40,000-piece art collection. Lucas emphasized the emotional connection inherent in this kind of art: “It’s more about a connection and emotional connection with the work, not how much it cost or what celebrity did it. If you have emotional connection, it’s art. If you don’t, just move on to the next painting.” The museum will display familiar pieces by illustrators; mural paintings of the 20th and 21st centuries; comic art, of which the museum has deep and extensive holdings; children’s book illustrations; science-fiction illustrations; and the fantastic visions captured in 20th-century culture. The museum will also display cinematic artifacts, including movie posters, and show documentaries featuring artists and filmmakers. The museum’s collection will feature works by artists such as Norman Rockwell, Kadir Nelson, Jessie Willcox Smith, N. C. Wyeth, Beatrix Potter, Judith F. Baca, Frida Kahlo, and Maxfield Parrish; comic art legends such as Winsor McCay, Jack Kirby, Frank Frazetta, Alison Bechdel, Chris Ware, and Robert Crumb; and photographers Gordon Parks, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and Dorothea Lange. The museum will also house the Lucas Archives, containing models, props, concept art, and costumes from Lucas’s filmmaking career.
