After seven years of waiting the finish line is finally in sight for, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art.

Museum officials announced yesterday that the more than $1-billion project, spearheaded by Star Wars creator George Lucas and his wife Mellody Hobson, will make its debut on September 22, 2026. Construction for the 300,000-square-foot building commenced in 2018, and saw completion delayed several times during the course of the global pandemic.

Aerial view looking northwestHunter Kerhart Architectural Photography

The Lucas Museum will house 35 galleries, totaling 100,000 square feet in size, and will also display documentaries featuring artists and filmmakers. Its permanent collection will consist of more than 40,000 works, including pieces by illustrators, murals from the 20th and 21st centuries, comic art, children's book illustrations, science-fiction illustrations, and cinematic artifacts like movie posters. Artists whose work is included in the collection include Norman Rockwell, Jack Kirby, Alison Bechdel, Frida Kahlo, Beatrix Potter, Gordon Parks, and Dorothea Lange, among others.

“Stories are mythology, and when illustrated, they help humans understand the mysteries of life,” said museum co-founder George Lucas in a statement. The museum was built on the belief that illustrated storytelling is a universal language. 

Aerial view looking southeastHunter Kerhart Architectural Photography

MAD Architects designed the museum, with Stantec serving  as executive architect. The five-story building is clad in 1,500 glass fiber reinforced polymer panels, while its rooftop is adorned with greenery and solar panels.

The museum is part of an 11-acre campus on the western side of Exposition Park, fronting Vermont Avenue, which will also include new gardens designed by Studio-MLA. That space will also incorporate new entry points to the park, as well as community amenities such as an amphitheater, a hanging garden, and a pedestrian bridge.

Aerial view looking northHunter Kerhart Architectural Photography

The Lucas Museum is one of two large construction projects now reshaping Exposition Park, joining the  $400-million Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center now underway next to the California Science Center. Exposition Park officials have also announced plans for a $352-million addition of new green space along Figueroa Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, which is now set to occur after the 2028 Olympics.

Follow us on social media: 

Twitter / Facebook / LinkedIn / Threads / Instagram / Bluesky