LACMA — the Los Angeles County Museum of Art — is the big one. It's the encyclopedic museum that LA has been building toward for decades, and in 2025 it's about to change completely. The new David Geffen Galleries, designed by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Peter Zumthor, will open on April 26, 2025 with 105,000 square feet of gallery space in a single 620-foot-long building that literally spans Wilshire Boulevard. It's the biggest museum opening in the country this year and the culmination of a 14-year campus transformation.
But even before the new building opens, LACMA is already one of the most important cultural destinations in LA. The collection is staggering — everything from ancient Egyptian art to Picasso to contemporary installations. And then there's the outdoor art: Urban Light, the 202 restored vintage street lamps that have become the most Instagrammed spot in Los Angeles, and Levitated Mass, the 340-ton boulder suspended over a concrete trench. LACMA sits on 20 acres in the Miracle Mile neighborhood, right next to the La Brea Tar Pits and across the street from the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures. You could spend an entire day on this one block of Wilshire Boulevard.
The David Geffen Galleries (Opening April 26, 2025)
This is the event. Designed by Peter Zumthor, the new building replaces four aging museum structures with a single, elevated gallery space. The building floats above ground level on piers, with floating staircases and elevators providing access from both the north and south sides of Wilshire Boulevard. The architectural concrete exterior is wrapped in custom glass panels. Below the gallery level, pavilions house three restaurants and cafes, the LACMA Store, a 250-seat theater (the Steve Tisch Theater), and an education center.
Forty-five curators have collaborated on the inaugural installation, organizing the collection not by medium or period, but by geography — the Pacific, Indian, and Atlantic Oceans and the Mediterranean Sea. The idea is to show how cultures have always exchanged, migrated, and traded across these waterways, bringing works spanning 6,000 years into dialogue with each other on a single level.
Highlights of the inaugural collection:
- Georges de La Tour's The Magdalen with the Smoking Flame (1640)
- Henri Matisse's La Gerbe (1953)
- Francis Bacon's Three Studies of Lucian Freud (1969)
- Vincent van Gogh's Tarascon Stagecoach (1888)
- New commissions by Todd Gray, Lauren Halsey, Sarah Rosalena, Do Ho Suh, and Diana Thater
Timeline:
- April 26: Ribbon-cutting and member priority access begins
- April 27 – May 9: Members and donors preview period
- May 4: Free NexGenLA day (LA County residents 17 and under)
- May 2025: Full public opening
- April 26: Architect Peter Zumthor in conversation with LACMA CEO Michael Govan (free, on the East West Bank Commons)
The Existing Campus (Open Now)
BCAM (Broad Contemporary Art Museum)
Renzo Piano-designed building housing LACMA's beloved modern and contemporary collection on the third floor. Works by Picasso, Magritte, Pollock, and more.
Resnick Pavilion
Large-scale exhibitions and additional permanent collection works. Included in general admission — meaning your ticket gets you into everything on view.
Pavilion for Japanese Art
One of the most serene spaces in any LA museum. Japanese screens, ceramics, textiles, and prints.
Outdoor Art (Always Free)
Urban Light — 202 restored cast iron antique street lamps arranged in a grid outside the Wilshire Boulevard entrance. Created by artist Chris Burden, installed in 2008, and now arguably the most iconic public artwork in Los Angeles. The lamps are powered by solar energy. They turn on at dusk and off at dawn. Urban Light is accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, free, no ticket required. You can check isurbanlighton.com for the current illumination status.
Levitated Mass — Michael Heizer's monumental sculpture: a 340-ton boulder of diorite gneiss suspended above a 456-foot-long concrete slot. You walk beneath it. The rock was transported from a quarry in Riverside over 11 nights in 2012 on a 294-foot-long custom transport vehicle. It's permanent, free to visit, and open sunrise to sunset daily (closed when raining).
Forthcoming: The entire ground plane of the new W.M. Keck Plaza (65,000 sq ft) will become a commissioned artwork by Mariana Castillo Deball titled Feathered Changes. Jeff Koons' floral Split-Rocker will also be installed.
Visiting Info
Address: 5905 Wilshire Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Hours
Mon, Tue, Thu: 11 am – 6 pm · Fri: 11 am – 8 pm · Sat & Sun: 10 am – 7 pm · Closed Wednesdays
Admission
Adults: ~$20 · LA County residents: Free weekdays after 3 pm with valid ID · LA County youth 17 and under: Always free · Free for all on the second Tuesday of each month
Tickets
Advance timed-entry tickets strongly recommended. Book at lacma.org or call 323-857-6010.
Transit
Metro bus lines run along Wilshire Boulevard. The Purple Line's Wilshire/La Brea station is nearby.
Where to Eat
Ray's and Stark Bar — On campus LACMA's own farm-to-table restaurant and craft cocktail bar. Will reopen in a new space within the David Geffen Galleries. Reservations recommended.
Republique — 5 min walk Outstanding bakery/restaurant in a gorgeous Charlie Chaplin-era building. Brunch is legendary.
Slab — 5 min Excellent BBQ.
Quarters Korean BBQ — 5 min Grill your own meat, perfect for groups.
The Original Farmers Market & The Grove — 10 min walk A sprawling collection of food stalls and restaurants at 3rd & Fairfax, operating since 1934. Adjacent to The Grove shopping center.
Salt & Straw (at Farmers Market) — 10 min Famous ice cream with creative flavors.
How to Do It Right
- Visit on the second Tuesday of the month. Free admission for everyone. It's busier than a normal Tuesday, but you can't beat the price.
- LA County residents: come on a weekday after 3 pm. Free admission with valid ID. Friday after 3 pm is especially good because the museum stays open until 8 pm — that's 5 free hours.
- For Urban Light photos, come at dusk or after dark. The lamps turn on at sunset and the effect is magical. It's free and doesn't require museum admission. Late evening on a weekday is the least crowded for photos.
- Plan around the new building opening. The David Geffen Galleries open April 26, 2025. The first few weeks will be members-only, with full public opening in May 2025. Plan a visit for summer 2025 to see the new building before word fully gets out.
- Combine with the La Brea Tar Pits and Academy Museum. The tar pits are literally on the same property — a 2-minute walk. The Academy Museum is across the street at Wilshire and Fairfax. You could do LACMA + Tar Pits + Academy Museum in one (very full) day.
Nearby
La Brea Tar Pits (same property) Active fossil excavation, Ice Age museum, free outdoor viewing. They've pulled out saber-toothed cats, mammoths, and dire wolves from this one spot in the middle of LA.
Academy Museum of Motion Pictures (across the street) The Oscars museum. Film history, props, costumes, rooftop terrace with Hollywood Sign views.
Petersen Automotive Museum (across the street) World-class car museum with stunning architecture.
Craft Contemporary (next door) Small but excellent contemporary craft and design museum.
The Original Farmers Market (10 min walk) Historic food hall at 3rd & Fairfax, operating since 1934.
The Grove (10 min walk) Popular outdoor shopping center adjacent to Farmers Market.
Frequently Asked Questions
When do the new David Geffen Galleries open? April 26, 2025 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Members and donors have priority access April 27 – May 9. Full public opening follows in May 2025. This is the biggest museum opening in LA in decades.
Is Urban Light free? Yes, always. Urban Light is an outdoor public artwork accessible 24/7 with no ticket required. It turns on at dusk and off at dawn.
How long should I spend at LACMA? Plan for 2–3 hours for the existing campus. Once the Geffen Galleries open with 105,000 sq ft of new gallery space, plan for 3–5 hours to see everything. If you add the La Brea Tar Pits and Academy Museum, you're looking at a full day.
Is LACMA good for a group outing? Absolutely. The campus is huge with indoor and outdoor spaces, Urban Light is the ultimate group photo spot, and the surrounding neighborhood (Farmers Market, The Grove, Miracle Mile restaurants) gives you great options for food and drinks after. LA County residents can come free after 3 pm on weekdays — making it an easy group plan that costs nothing.
Can I visit just Urban Light without going into the museum? Yes. Urban Light is outside the museum entrance and accessible to anyone at any time, day or night, for free. Levitated Mass is also free and open sunrise to sunset.
Is LACMA accessible? Fully. The campus and all buildings are ADA compliant. The new David Geffen Galleries are designed with universal accessibility as a core principle.
What's the difference between LACMA and the Getty? LACMA is encyclopedic — it covers art from every culture and era across 6,000 years, from ancient to contemporary. The Getty Center focuses specifically on European art up to 1900, plus photography. LACMA is paid admission (with many free options); the Getty is always free. LACMA is in the Miracle Mile; the Getty is on a hilltop in Brentwood. Both are essential.
What about the La Brea Tar Pits next door? The tar pits are on the same 20-acre Hancock Park property as LACMA. You can see active tar seepage and the outdoor excavation sites for free. The Page Museum (the indoor fossil museum) has a separate admission. Scientists have recovered millions of specimens from the pits, including saber-toothed cats, dire wolves, mammoths, and giant ground sloths.
Is LACMA free for LA residents? LACMA offers free general admission for LA County residents after 3 p.m. on weekdays. Some special exhibitions may have separate admission fees.
What is the famous light post installation at LACMA? Urban Light by Chris Burden is the iconic installation of 202 restored cast-iron street lamps outside LACMA's entrance. It's one of the most photographed spots in LA.
How long does it take to go through LACMA? Plan for 2 to 3 hours to see the highlights. The museum's collection spans over 6,000 years of art, so you could easily spend a full day.
Last verified: February 2025. Exhibition dates and parking rates can change — check lacma.org for current info.
