Lucas Museum of Narrative Art

Lucas Museum of Narrative Art

Conceived by George Lucas and Mellody Hobson as a gift to the State of California and City of Los Angeles, the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art and its surrounding park introduce a new cultural anchor and public green space to South LA’s Exposition Park. With landscape architecture shaped by Studio-MLA’s mission of advocacy by design, the project transforms an 11‑acre parking lot into a richly layered natural environment that corresponds with the museum’s architecture in a gentle continuity of form and movement. Studio‑MLA approached the project with a challenge from the museum’s founders to imagine a landscape that tells a story, designing the park as a living narrative where inspiration from Southern California’s unique terrain, urban environments, and tradition of storytelling converge.

Drawing from narrative art, film concept art, and mythic landscapes in the museum’s collection, the design translates storytelling into landforms, spatial sequences, and sensory experiences. The landscape is choreographed as a sequence of shifting scales and atmospheres, with quiet shaded areas, expansive lawns, an amphitheater, and elevated overlooks that frame moments of awe. A roof garden atop the museum extends the rich landscape experience vertically and offers panoramic views that orient visitors within Los Angeles’s larger geography. Plant communities inspired by Southern California’s diverse terrains to support ecology, habitat, pollinators, and local fauna, reinforcing the notion that the landscape is a continually unfolding story. The landscape architecture offers a resilient, welcoming public space for neighbors and visitors to enjoy and discover their own stories for generations to come.

More info at www.lucasmuseum.org

Images beautifully captured by Patrick Price.