LACMA's David Geffen Galleries Open After Two Decades
The Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) opened its David Geffen Galleries in April 2026, designed by Peter Zumthor in collaboration with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM). The 274-meter-long structure, suspended over Wilshire Boulevard, features a monolithic concrete and glass design that eliminates a traditional entrance and hierarchical circulation, allowing visitors to create their own path. The curatorial approach, led by director Michael Govan, presents around three thousand works without chronological or geographical order, emphasizing cross-cultural connections. The building includes a single elevated level that frees public space at ground level, with a shaded plaza featuring tropical vegetation. Lighting is modulated by metal curtains and controlled openings, creating atmospheric conditions for art reception. The project, with an investment of approximately $724 million, underwent multiple adjustments and delays. Govan describes the museum as an archipelago where works coexist in open relationships, reflecting flows that dissolve boundaries.
Key facts
- LACMA's David Geffen Galleries opened in April 2026.
- Designed by Peter Zumthor in collaboration with Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM).
- The building is 274 meters long and suspended over Wilshire Boulevard.
- No traditional entrance or hierarchical circulation; visitors create their own itinerary.
- Approximately three thousand works are displayed without chronological or geographical order.
- Investment of around $724 million.
- Director Michael Govan describes the museum as an archipelago.
- Project took two decades from design initiation to opening.
Entities
Artists
- Peter Zumthor
- Michael Govan
- Iwan Baan
- El Anatsui
- Liz Glynn
- Mariana Castillo Deball
- Tony Smith
- Alexander Calder
- Henri Matisse
- Jeff Koons
- Renoir
- Reiko Sudõ
- Oscar Niemeyer
- Arthur Erickson
- Eero Saarinen
- Frank Gehry
- William Pereira
- Bruce Goff
- Mimi Zeiger
- Chris Burden
- Jean Tinguely
- Michael Heizer
- Ed Ruscha
- Jonathan Anderson
- Pompeo Batoni
- Renzo Piano
- Richard Prince
- Wendy Red Star
- Betye Saar
- Winslow Homer
- Henri Cartier-Bresson
- Yang Fudong
- Do Ho Suh
- Nasser Al Salem
- Arthur Frank Mathews
- Paul Caponigro
- Major Paul Mascarene
- Gordon Bunshaft
- Lauren Halsey
- Pedro Reyes
- Reiko Sudo
- Britt Salvesen
- T Bone Burnett
- Bob Dylan
- Mamo Camilo
- Francis Bacon
Institutions
- LACMA (Los Angeles County Museum of Art)
- Skidmore, Owings & Merrill (SOM)
- David Geffen Galleries
- Pritzker Architecture Prize
- La Tempestad
- Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA)
- SOM (Skidmore, Owings & Merrill)
- Renzo Piano Building Workshop
- Olin
- MASH STUDIOS
- Erewhon
- Dior
- Vanity Fair
- Academy Awards
- Keck Education Center
- The Architect's Newspaper
- Academy Museum
- Pavilion for Japanese Art
- La Brea Tar Pits
- Tate Modern
- Museum of Modern Art (MoMA)
- Louvre
- Metropolitan Museum of Art
- Atelier Peter Zumthor
- Hirshhorn Museum
- Artillery Magazine
- Los Angeles County Museum of Art
- Seki Foundation
- Mona Khan Company
- NUNO Corporation
- Wallis Annenberg Photography Department
- Genesis
- East West Bank
- Gucci
Locations
- Los Angeles
- United States
- Wilshire Boulevard
- Hancock Park
- Resnick Pavilion
- Broad Contemporary Art Museum
- Japanese Pavilion
- Welcome Plaza
- Miracle Mile
- California
- New York
- Rome
- Europe
- Pacific
- Washington, D.C.
- Venice
- Redding, Connecticut
- Paraguay
- Argentina
- Germany
- Nova Scotia
- China
- India Ocean
- Mexico City
- Mexico
- Teotihuacan
- Switzerland
- Colombia
- Kutunsama
- South Central Los Angeles