Los Angeles approves long-awaited George Lucas art museum

Oscar Holland, CNN
3 minute read
Updated 9:34 PM EDT, Wed June 28, 2017
Plans for the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art were unanimously approved by the Los Angeles City Council Tuesday, ending the project's long wait for a home. The design is by Beijing-based firm MAD Architects.
Lucas Museum of Narrative Art (2021) —
Plans for the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art were unanimously approved by the Los Angeles City Council Tuesday, ending the project's long wait for a home. The design is by Beijing-based firm MAD Architects.
courtesy of Lucas Museum of Narrative Art
"It's a cloud of knowledge for people to explore," MAD Architects founder Ma Yansong told CNN shortly after Tuesday's announcement. Click through the gallery for more projects by the Beijing-based firm.
Lucas Museum of Narrative Art (2021) —
"It's a cloud of knowledge for people to explore," MAD Architects founder Ma Yansong told CNN shortly after Tuesday's announcement. Click through the gallery for more projects by the Beijing-based firm.
courtesy of Lucas Museum of Narrative Art
MAD designs high-profile international projects around the world. An example of another cultural center, the polished bronze metal facade of the Ordos Museum (above) is intended to represent the rising sun over the surrounding grasslands.
Ordos Museum (2011), Inner Mongolia, China —
MAD designs high-profile international projects around the world. An example of another cultural center, the polished bronze metal facade of the Ordos Museum (above) is intended to represent the rising sun over the surrounding grasslands.
Iwan Baan/courtesy mad architects
Located in the oceanfront of Southern China, this vast residential complex combines high rise structure and undulating typology, aiming for a high-density solution.
Fake Hills (2015), Beihai, China —
Located in the oceanfront of Southern China, this vast residential complex combines high rise structure and undulating typology, aiming for a high-density solution.
MAD Architects
The design for Urban Forest is intended to integrate nature with "stacked" open floors and areas that include patios and sky gardens.
Urban Forest (2009), Chongqing, China —
The design for Urban Forest is intended to integrate nature with "stacked" open floors and areas that include patios and sky gardens.
MAD Architects
Floor to ceiling glass windows provide a panoramic view of the city.
Urban Forest (2009), Chongqing —
Floor to ceiling glass windows provide a panoramic view of the city.
courtesy mad architects
Influenced by Buckminster Fuller's geodesic domes, the architects designed a form of abstract container to protect the interior from its harsh local climate.
Ordos Museum (2011), Inner Mongolia, China —
Influenced by Buckminster Fuller's geodesic domes, the architects designed a form of abstract container to protect the interior from its harsh local climate.
Iwan Baan/courtesy mad architects
The Nanjing Zendai Himalayas Center embodies the Chinese notion of "shanshui," meaning mountain and water. The building responds to the surrounding mountains and rivers while meeting the material needs of urban life.
Nanjing Zendai Himalays Center (2017), Nanjing, China —
The Nanjing Zendai Himalayas Center embodies the Chinese notion of "shanshui," meaning mountain and water. The building responds to the surrounding mountains and rivers while meeting the material needs of urban life.
MAD Architects
Curvaceous glass walls flow like waterfalls and corridors and paths weave through the complexes, creating a poetic movement.
Nanjing Zendai Himalays Center (2017), Nanjing, China —
Curvaceous glass walls flow like waterfalls and corridors and paths weave through the complexes, creating a poetic movement.
courtesy mad architects
The project is on track to be completed in 2017.
Nanjing Zendai Himalays Center (2017), Nanjing, China —
The project is on track to be completed in 2017.
courtesy mad architects
Located at the intersection of two main streets, the Absolute Towers are one of the city's well-known landmarks.
Absolute Towers (2012), Mississauga, Canada —
Located at the intersection of two main streets, the Absolute Towers are one of the city's well-known landmarks.
Iwan Baan/courtesy MAD Architects
The Absolute Towers look as if they are "rotating", depending on your vantage point.
Absolute Towers (2012), Mississauga, Canada —
The Absolute Towers look as if they are "rotating", depending on your vantage point.
Iwan Baan/courtesy MAD architects
The buildings' curvaceous form has been likened to Marilyn Monroe.
Absolute Towers (2012), Mississauga, Canada —
The buildings' curvaceous form has been likened to Marilyn Monroe.
Iwan Baan/courtesy MAD Architects
The Harbin Opera House effortlessly blends in with its surroundings in the untamed northern region.
Harbin Opera House (2015), Harbin, China —
The Harbin Opera House effortlessly blends in with its surroundings in the untamed northern region.
Hufton Crow/courtesy mad architects
Made of white aluminum panels and glass pyramids, the opera house references the snow and ice of Harbin's sub-zero climate.
Harbin Opera House (2015), Harbin, China —
Made of white aluminum panels and glass pyramids, the opera house references the snow and ice of Harbin's sub-zero climate.
Iwan Baan/courtesy MAD architects
With an interior sculpted from Manchurian Ash wood, its spatial arrangement offers world-class acoustics.
Harbin Opera House (2015), Harbin, China —
With an interior sculpted from Manchurian Ash wood, its spatial arrangement offers world-class acoustics.
Adam Mork/courtesy mad architects
Located near the Huangshan Mountains in China's Anhui province, this village blurs the boundaries between modern architecture and nature.
Huangshan Mountain Village (2015), Huangshan, China —
Located near the Huangshan Mountains in China's Anhui province, this village blurs the boundaries between modern architecture and nature.
courtesy mad architects
The village faces the serene Taiping lake.
Huangshan Mountain Village (2015), Huangshan, China —
The village faces the serene Taiping lake.
courtesy mad architects
Its form blends seamlessly into the surrounding limestone cliffs.
Huangshan Mountain Village (2015), Huangshan, China —
Its form blends seamlessly into the surrounding limestone cliffs.
courtesy mad architects
The UNIC, still under construction, will be built in collaboration with the French architecture firm Biecher Architectes.
UNIC, Paris —
The UNIC, still under construction, will be built in collaboration with the French architecture firm Biecher Architectes.
MAD Architects
The 50-meters-tall building, situated in the neighborhood of Clichy-Batignolles, is made of 13 organically stacked terraces.
UNIC, Paris —
The 50-meters-tall building, situated in the neighborhood of Clichy-Batignolles, is made of 13 organically stacked terraces.
courtesy mad architects
The Chaoyang Park Plaza, composed of over 120,000 square meters, took inspiration from Chinese classical landscape paintings, which often feature lakes, springs, forests, and stones.
Chaoyang Park Plaza (2016), Beijing, China —
The Chaoyang Park Plaza, composed of over 120,000 square meters, took inspiration from Chinese classical landscape paintings, which often feature lakes, springs, forests, and stones.
courtesy MAD Architects
Completed in 2016, the Chaoyang Park Plaza has green features such as natural lighting and a passive ventilation system integrated in the complex.
Chaoyang Park Plaza (2016), Beijing, China —
Completed in 2016, the Chaoyang Park Plaza has green features such as natural lighting and a passive ventilation system integrated in the complex.
courtesy mad architects
The smooth vertical lines flowing down the buildings resemble river stones that have been eroded over a long period of time.
Chaoyang Park Plaza (2016), Beijing, China —
The smooth vertical lines flowing down the buildings resemble river stones that have been eroded over a long period of time.
MAD Architects
The China Wood Sculpture Museum is an example of a sustainable design by MAD Architects. Solid walls help to save energy and retain heat.<br />
China Wood Sculpture Museum (2013), Harbin, China —
The China Wood Sculpture Museum is an example of a sustainable design by MAD Architects. Solid walls help to save energy and retain heat.
Iwan Baan/courtesy mad architects
Polished metal plates on the exterior mirror the city lights at night.
China Wood Sculpture Museum (2013), Harbin, China —
Polished metal plates on the exterior mirror the city lights at night.
Iwan Baan/courtesy mad architects
This metallic bubble is located in one of Beijing's oldest neighborhoods.
Hutong Bubble 32 (2009), Beijing, China —
This metallic bubble is located in one of Beijing's oldest neighborhoods.
courtesy mad architects
The Hutong Bubble, a designer outhouse with a single toilet and staircase, is part of an initiative to help the community.
Hutong Bubble 32 (2009), Beijing, China —
The Hutong Bubble, a designer outhouse with a single toilet and staircase, is part of an initiative to help the community.
courtesy mad architects
'MAD' visions
CNN  — 

After three years of talks – and proposals in three different cities – “Star Wars” creator George Lucas has finally secured a green light for his art museum.

Plans for the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art were unanimously approved by the Los Angeles City Council Tuesday, ending the project’s long wait for a home.

China's private art museums: Icons or empty vanity projects?

According to the museum’s official website, the $1.2-billion development, dedicated to the art of storytelling, will be built without taxpayer money. Lucas and his wife, Mellody Hobson, are set to donate some of their 10,000-strong collection of paintings, illustrations and movie memorabilia.

As well as works by the likes of Edgar Degas and Pierre-Auguste Renoir, the museum will exhibit storyboards, artwork and props from Hollywood movies. The collection includes items from the “Star Wars” franchise, including Darth Vader’s original mask and the first lightsaber used by Luke Skywalker.

‘A cloud of knowledge’

Set to open in 2021, the museum is scheduled to break ground next year. The approved site at Exposition Park, in southern Los Angeles, is close to the University of Southern California, where Lucas studied film.

“The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art will add another world-class institution to our city’s cultural landscape, and bring a breathtaking architectural jewel to Exposition Park,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti in a statement.

“I am proud to have worked with George Lucas and Mellody Hobson to bring this incredible gift to Los Angeles – and I applaud the City Council for voting to approve a gem for South L.A. that will touch the lives of Angelenos and visitors for generations to come.”

Lucas Museum of Narrative Art.
Lucas Museum of Narrative Art.
courtesy of Lucas Museum of Narrative Art

Gallery space will take up approximately one third of the 290,000 square-foot building. The structure, designed by Beijing-based architecture firm MAD Architects, will also feature theaters, classrooms and lecture halls.

“It’s a cloud of knowledge for people to explore,” MAD founder Ma Yansong told CNN shortly after Tuesday’s announcement.

But Lucas has also faced criticism for the project. In a scathing editorial published earlier this year, Los Angeles Times art critic Christopher Knight dismissed the museum as “a sentimental vanity gallery pumped up on soppy emotional steroids.”

Long search for a home

The project was first announced in 2014, though it has faced high-profile setbacks since. While Lucas had originally hoped to build the museum in Chicago, he eventually withdrew proposals citing “extensive delays” caused by lobbying group Friends of the Parks.

Hoping to preserve the lakeside site, the not-for-profit group had attempted to block the lakeside structure by filing a federal lawsuit in November 2014.

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San Francisco was also touted as an alternative home for the museum. In addition to his Los Angeles designs, MAD’s Ma Yansong created proposals for a rival site on Treasure Island, an artificial island in San Fransisco Bay.

But in January, the museum’s board of directors announced that the Los Angeles bid had won – subject to the submission of further plans and an environmental impact report. Los Angeles City Council Tuesday voted 14-0 in favor of the proposal.