The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) has unveiled the David Geffen Galleries, a $724 million concrete-and-glass structure designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Peter Zumthor. Spanning Wilshire Boulevard, the 110,000-square-foot horizontal gallery space floats 30 feet above ground and features a non-chronological layout intended to encourage wandering. The interior is characterized by pigment-infused concrete walls, floor-to-ceiling windows with specialized metal curtains by Reiko Sudō, and a lack of traditional white-cube galleries.
This opening marks the culmination of a two-decade project to modernize LACMA and redefine the visitor experience through a non-hierarchical display of its 155,000-object collection. By eschewing chronological or geographic silos, the museum aims to reflect the interconnectedness of modern Los Angeles. The project represents a significant architectural shift for the city and a major gamble on a decentralized curatorial philosophy led by director Michael Govan.