Introduction to the Lucas Museum Landscape
The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, rising on what used to be a parking lot in Exposition Park in downtown L.A., is devoted to visual storytelling: the comics of Charles M. Schulz (“Peanuts”) and Alex Raymond (“Flash Gordon”), movie concept art by Neal Adams (“Batman”) and Ralph McQuarrie (“Star Wars”), paintings by Frida Kahlo and Jacob Lawrence, photography by Gordon Parks and Dorothea Lange, illustrations by Norman Rockwell and N.C. Wyeth.
The Driving Forces Behind the Landscape Design
So when George Lucas and wife Mellody Hobson chose Mia Lehrer and her L.A. firm, Studio-MLA, to design the 11 acres of landscape around — and on top of — MAD Architects’ swirling, otherworldly, billion-dollar building, the driving forces behind the Lucas Museum made it clear that the landscape had to tell a story too.
Studying the Landscapes of Myths and Movies
Lehrer and her team studied how directors, illustrators and painters use topography to help amplify, among other things, emotion, sequence and storyline. A long stretch of park space extends from the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, which sits next to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
(Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)
The Result: A Sinuous, Eclectic Landscape
The result — which feels surprisingly grown-in even though the museum won’t open until next year — is a sinuous, eclectic landscape that unfolds in discrete vignettes, all promoting exploration and distinct experience. Each zone contains varied textures, colors, scales and often framed views. A shaded walkway curls along a meandering meadow and lifts you toward a hilly canyon. A footbridge carries you above a developing conifer thicket. A plant-covered trellis, known as “the hanging garden,” provides a more compressed moment of pause. The environment, like a good story, continually shifts tone and tempo.
The Magic of the Design
“It’s episodic,” Parekh said. “Each biome reveals something new, each path hints at what’s ahead without giving it away.”
Lucas Museum staff and design team stand under the trellis of “the hanging garden.”
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
A Key Theme: The Diverse Terrain of California
A key theme of the story is the diverse terrain of California — a place that, in Lehrer’s words, “contains more varied environments in a single day’s drive than most countries do in a week.” Foothills and valleys, groves and canyons, even the mesas, plateaus and plains of the Sierra and the Central Valley — Lehrer calls all of it a “choreography of place.”
The Narrative of Time
Another, more subtle, layer of this narrative is time. Plantings were laid out to bloom in different seasons and in different places. Bright yellow “Safari Goldstrike” leucadendron, edging the meadow and canyon, come alive in late winter and early spring. Tall jacarandas, spied from a foothills overlook, emerge then quickly disappear. “Bee’s Bliss” sage, lying low in the oak woodland, turn lavender blue in the early summer. Something is always emerging, something else fading.
The Ever-Changing Landscape
“Every month, every visit, feels different,” Parekh said. Even the alpine-inspired plantings cladding the museum’s roof — colorful wildflowers, long sweeping grasses and coarse scrubs, all chosen for their hardiness, lightness and shallow roots — follow this rhythm.
The landscape creates the illusion that some plantings run right up to the museum. Here, the black void on the underside of the building is the opening for a giant waterfall that will cascade to a pool below.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
The Grounds and the Museum’s Design
The grounds include the terraced seating of an amphitheater.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
The plant palette includes low-water selections.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
Amazingly, the rest of the landscape is a kind of green roof as well, sitting atop a 2,400-spot underground parking structure — available to those visiting the Lucas or any of Expo Park’s other institutions.
Minimizing Environmental Impact
The topography was designed to minimize environmental impact. Hundreds of plants, mostly native to the region, are drought-tolerant (or at least require little watering). A rain-harvesting system captures water for irrigation. And on the north edge of the museum will be “The Rain,” a waterfall that doubles as a passive cooling system, replacing traditional air-conditioning infrastructure.
A Game Changer for the Community
In this part of South L.A., park space is egregiously scarce, a remnant of redlining and disinvestment. This space — set to be open to the public without a ticket, from dawn to dusk — is a game changer, as is a massive green space on Expo Park’s south side that also replaces a surface parking lot and tops an underground garage.
Bringing Everything Together
For Lehrer, the landscape is a convergence of civic and ecological ideas that she’s developed throughout her career — really ever since a chance encounter with the intricate original drawings for Central Park while she was studying at the Harvard Graduate School of Design spurred her to pivot from planning to landscape architecture.
Kush Parekh, left, and Mia Lehrer of Studio-MLA.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
Conclusion
The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art’s landscape design is a masterful blend of storytelling, ecology, and community-driven design. By incorporating a diverse range of plant species, minimizing environmental impact, and creating a porous public space, the museum has set a new standard for urban landscape design. As the museum prepares to open its doors, the landscape will continue to evolve and grow, providing a unique and ever-changing experience for visitors.
FAQs
Q: When will the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art open?
A: The museum is set to open next year.
Q: What is the significance of the landscape design?
A: The landscape design tells a story and promotes exploration and distinct experience, while also minimizing environmental impact and providing a game-changing public space for the community.
Q: What types of plants are used in the landscape design?
A: The plant palette includes drought-tolerant and native species, as well as alpine-inspired plantings on the museum’s roof.
Q: How does the landscape design interact with the museum’s building?
A: The landscape design is integrated with the museum’s building, with paths and bridges that echo the building’s curves and a rooftop garden that provides a unique perspective on the city.
Q: What is the significance of the waterfall feature?
A: The waterfall feature, known as “The Rain,” serves as a passive cooling system and replaces traditional air-conditioning infrastructure.
