The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art will not open until September, but on Thursday officials unveiled plans for about 20 inaugural exhibitions, including installations curated by George Lucas.
The approximately 300,000-square-foot complex in Exposition Park features a sweeping, modern design. The project also includes about 11 acres of landscaped green space extending onto the building’s roof.
Founded by Lucas and his wife, Mellody Hobson, the institution will showcase a rotating selection from the filmmaker’s extensive collection of narrative art, including works such as comic art, manga and imagery tied to children’s storytelling that are not typically emphasized in conventional museums.
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More than seven years after construction began, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art announced today it will open to the public on Sept. 22, 2026. Construction on the $1 billion museum, founded by filmmaker George Lucas and his wife Mellody Hobson continues on Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025 is viewed from above along S. Vermont Ave. in Exposition Park. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
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More than seven years after construction began, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art announced today it will open to the public on Sept. 22, 2026. Construction on the $1 billion museum, founded by filmmaker George Lucas and his wife Mellody Hobson continues on Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2025 is viewed from above along S. Vermont Ave. in Exposition Park. (Photo by Dean Musgrove, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Museum representatives said the opening presentations will feature more than 1,200 artworks displayed across about 100,000 square feet of gallery space.
“George Lucas and Mellody Hobson co-founded the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art to honor the universal tradition of telling stories through images,” museum officials said in a statement. “Encompassing everything from prehistoric cave paintings to today’s screen art, the Museum explores and celebrates the power of visual storytelling to inspire individuals, give shape to beliefs and ideals, and forge community.”
The inaugural lineup will include a range of thematic galleries, beginning with exhibitions focused on architecture and the design influences behind the museum, as well as works by American painter Thomas Hart Benton portraying scenes of everyday life.
Additional galleries will highlight illustrations from children’s literature by artists such as Beatrix Potter and E. H. Shepard.
Officials said other sections will center on filmmaking, featuring production materials from the Lucas archives, along with exhibits exploring themes such as childhood, family, work and community, and artistic depictions of civic life.
The museum will also present exhibitions dedicated to comic and graphic storytelling, with works by artists including Jack Kirby and Alison Bechdel, as well as displays highlighting Japanese manga and anime.
Additional galleries will feature illustrations by Frank Frazetta, paintings and prints interpreting historical events, and works by illustrators such as Norman Rockwell and N. C. Wyeth.
Large-scale mural works by artists including Diego Rivera are also planned, along with photography exhibitions featuring images by Dorothea Lange and Gordon Parks.
Other galleries will explore genres such as fantasy, romance and science fiction, as well as visual storytelling tied to myths of the American West.
The September 22 opening will mark the first time the public can view the full selection of artworks and experience the galleries as designed.
Additional details about specific works, programming and opening events are expected to be released in the coming months.