George Lucas’ self-funded, $1 billion museum has finally settled on a home: Los Angeles. After years of searching for a location for the project, The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art finally announced Tuesday its intention to build a massive structure in L.A. that will house the Star Wars director’s personal collection, as well as others. Dedicated to “explor[ing] how storytelling functions within the visual arts,” the museum will contain a mix of fine and popular art, showcasing everything from paintings by Degas, Rockwell, and Renoir to memorabilia from films like The Wizard of Oz, The Ten Commandments, and, naturally, Star Wars.
The museum was originally planned for Chicago’s Lakefront, but those plans changed after a lawsuit was filed by a nonprofit preservation group to block construction. San Francisco had also lobbied as a potential home for the project, which Los Angeles mayor Eric Garcetti has called “the largest civic gift in American history.” The building’s proposal promises a large, futuristic building that looks, appropriately, like something out of one of Lucas’ own films.
Lucas Museum of Narrative Art
Lucas is funding the project himself, which shouldn’t be a problem since selling Lucasfilm to Disney in 2012 to the tune of $4 billion in cash and stock. The museum’s targeted launch date is May 4, 2020, which also happens to be Star Wars Day. Until then, you can check out more of the collection here.
