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Art & Design|Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Los Angeles Sets 2026 Opening Date
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/11/12/arts/design/lucas-museum-opening-septemeber-2026.html
The 300,000-square-foot building will open Sept. 22 and showcase comic art, illustrations and more across 35 galleries. It began construction in 2018 but faced multiple delays.
Nov. 12, 2025Updated 2:19 p.m. ET
The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in Exposition Park in Los Angeles will open on Sept. 22, 2026, officials announced on Wednesday.
The museum, which was first proposed by the “Star Wars” creator George Lucas more than 15 years ago, broke ground in 2018. It was first set to open in 2021 but was pushed back twice.
The museum will explore how stories connect people and capture the human experience, it said in a statement.
Lucas, in the statement, said, “Stories are mythology, and when illustrated, they help humans understand the mysteries of life.” Mellody Hobson, the museum co-founder and Lucas’s wife, added: “Our hope is that as people move through the galleries, they will see themselves, and their humanity, reflected back.”
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The museum, at 300,000 square feet, will hold more than 40,000 works in its permanent collection. Its 35 galleries are each named to reflect human experiences like love, family, community, play, work, sports, childhood, adventure and more. They will include familiar pieces by illustrators, 20th and 21st-century murals, comic art, children’s book illustrations and movie posters. The museum will also show documentaries. Archives from Lucas’s filmmaking career, like models, props and costumes, will also be displayed at the museum.
The road to completion had been marred by years of delays and problems related to supply-chain issues, design changes and conflicts between the architect, Ma Yansong of MAD Architects with Stantec as the executive architect, and the general contractor, Hathaway Dinwiddie Construction Company.
In May, it was reported that the museum had parted ways with its director and chief executive, Sandra Jackson-Dumont, and eliminated 15 full-time and seven part-time positions.
Lucas has also installed himself as the head of “content direction.” Jim Gianopulos, a former movie studio executive and Lucas Museum trustee, is the interim chief executive and a special adviser to the museum founders.
Derrick Bryson Taylor is a Times reporter covering breaking news in culture and the arts.
