Swiss architect Peter Zumthors’ vision for renovating the Los Angeles County Museum of Art is finally taking shape above Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles — after the huge project next to the famed “Urban Lights” ran into issues involving the building’s foundation and the discovery of fossils on the site.
Completion of the new David Geffen Galleries is expected by late 2024. The new Geffen wing will sweep over the boulevard, not unlike a bridge, to connect with a parcel that used to be a museum parking lot. The art galleries will be on the upper level, held up by seven structural legs — “legs” that contain a restaurant, a bookshop, and a 300-seat auditorium south of Wilshire.
LACMA officials hope the single-floor gallery layout will make the art more accessible rather than stacking the galleries in a traditional vertical building.
The gallery level will include 26 core galleries — roughly 110,000 square feet of gallery space — making it slightly smaller than the 120,000 square feet of gallery space that the new building will replace. But that space does not include the new “meander galleries” along the perimeter of the building, according to LACMA.
The renovation may not fully open until 2026 as LACMA prepares the exhibits. The final projected cost will be $715 million, up from the original $650 million estimate. Some of the design elements of the new wing have been streamlined to keep costs down.
Things to do in the San Fernando Valley, LA area, April 25-May 2
Workers at the new David Geffen Gallery building on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Completion of the new David Geffen Galleries is expected by late 2024; However, it may not fully open until 2026 as LACMA prepares exhibits for the galleries. Delays were caused by complications with the building’s foundation, as well as the discovery of fossils on the site. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Workers at the new David Geffen Gallery building on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Completion of the new David Geffen Galleries is expected by late 2024; However, it may not fully open until 2026 as LACMA prepares exhibits for the galleries. Delays were caused by complications with the building’s foundation, as well as the discovery of fossils on the site. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Workers at the new David Geffen Gallery building on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Completion of the new David Geffen Galleries is expected by late 2024; However, it may not fully open until 2026 as LACMA prepares exhibits for the galleries. Delays were caused by complications with the building’s foundation, as well as the discovery of fossils on the site. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
The David Geffen Gallery building rises next to the “Urban Light” exhibit by Chris Burden at LACMA on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Completion of the new David Geffen Galleries is expected by late 2024; However, it may not fully open until 2026 as LACMA prepares exhibits for the galleries. Delays were caused by complications with the building’s foundation, as well as the discovery of fossils on the site. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Workers cross Wilshire Blvd as the new David Geffen Gallery building now sweeps across at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Completion of the new David Geffen Galleries is expected by late 2024; However, it may not fully open until 2026 as LACMA prepares exhibits for the galleries. Delays were caused by complications with the building’s foundation, as well as the discovery of fossils on the site. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
Workers at the new David Geffen Gallery building on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Completion of the new David Geffen Galleries is expected by late 2024; However, it may not fully open until 2026 as LACMA prepares exhibits for the galleries. Delays were caused by complications with the building’s foundation, as well as the discovery of fossils on the site. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
The Broad Contemporary Art Museum is reflected in the glass of the new David Geffen Gallery building art LACMA on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Completion of the new David Geffen Galleries is expected by late 2024; However, it may not fully open until 2026 as LACMA prepares exhibits for the galleries. Delays were caused by complications with the building’s foundation, as well as the discovery of fossils on the site. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
The new David Geffen Gallery building at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art rises above one of Ai Weiwei’s Zodiac Heads on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Completion of the new David Geffen Galleries is expected by late 2024; However, it may not fully open until 2026 as LACMA prepares exhibits for the galleries. Delays were caused by complications with the building’s foundation, as well as the discovery of fossils on the site. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
A worker surveys inside the new David Geffen Gallery building next to the Broad Contemporary Art Museum, at right, on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Completion of the new David Geffen Galleries is expected by late 2024; However, it may not fully open until 2026 as LACMA prepares exhibits for the galleries. Delays were caused by complications with the building’s foundation, as well as the discovery of fossils on the site. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
A couple takes photos in front of “Levitated Mass” by Michael Heizer as the new David Geffen Gallery building takes shape in the background on Thursday, May 16, 2024. Completion of the new David Geffen Galleries is expected by late 2024; However, it may not fully open until 2026 as LACMA prepares exhibits for the galleries. Delays were caused by complications with the building’s foundation, as well as the discovery of fossils on the site. (Photo by David Crane, Los Angeles Daily News/SCNG)
