The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) has opened the new David Geffen Galleries, a $742 million expansion to house its permanent collection.
Designed by Swiss architect Peter Zumthor, the building features a single exhibition floor, elevated above a new outdoor green space, and offers sweeping views of Los Angeles.
The design for the David Geffen Galleries is a 900-foot-long, horizontal, glass and concrete structure that stretches along Hancock Park and across Wilshire Boulevard.
"I’m grateful to the whole community of supporters, from the County of Los Angeles and the City of Los Angeles to the many donors who made the David Geffen Galleries possible," said Michael Govan, LACMA's CEO and director.
"Today marks the close of a 20-year story, but it is also the beginning of a new one. In these beautiful galleries, millions of visitors will rediscover LACMA’s globally diverse collection in conversation with the light and landscape of Los Angeles."
110,000 square feet of gallery space
Per a press release, 45 curators collaborated on the inaugural installation of the new building, filling 110,000 square feet of gallery space with works of art from LACMA's collection.
New works from the museum's collection of 155,000 objects spanning 6,000 years of world history will continue to be added over time.
The exhibition level of the David Geffen Galleries is supported by seven pavilions that provide spaces for education and public programming, as well as a theatre, shops and F&B outlets.
On 3 May, LACMA will open the David Geffen Galleries' new education centre on the plaza level. This will be followed this autumn by the restaurant, wine bar and theatre.
"I hope everyone will visit often and share in all the ways we bring people together with art, in the galleries and outside," Govan added.
The opening of the David Geffen Galleries represents the culmination of a 20-year campus transformation.
Images courtesy of LACMA
