The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, set to open on September 22, 2026, in Los Angeles's Exposition Park, has announced its inaugural exhibition schedule curated by George Lucas. The museum will showcase a wide range of narrative art, from Americana works by Thomas Hart Benton and Norman Rockwell to documentary photography by Gordon Parks, Dorothea Lange, and Robert Capa, as well as public murals by Diego Rivera and Judith F. Baca. The collection also includes production designs, props, and costumes from the Lucas Archives, alongside illustrations by Frank Frazetta, Maxfield Parrish, and N.C. Wyeth, children's literature art by Beatrix Potter and Jacob Lawrence, and comics and manga by Jack Kirby, Alison Bechdel, and Mœbius.
This matters because the museum, founded from Lucas's personal 40,000-piece collection, represents a major new cultural institution dedicated specifically to narrative art—a genre often overlooked by traditional fine art museums. By emphasizing emotional connection over market value, Lucas positions the museum as a populist counterpoint to elite art world norms, potentially reshaping how narrative-driven visual art is valued and exhibited. The 11-acre campus, designed by Ma Yansong of MAD and Mia Lehrer, also establishes a significant new cultural hub in Los Angeles.