Studio Gang, VOA Design Tapped For Lucas Museum Buildout

By Chuck Sudo in News on Jul 28, 2014 9:00PM

Details on the building of the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art are taking shape and will enlist the expertise of a couple local architectural firms.

Jeanne Gang, whose Studio Gang Architects is in the process of turning Northerly Island into a nature paradise, has been tapped to design a pedestrian bridge connecting Northerly Island with the Lucas Museum’s prospective location in a Soldier Field parking lot. Studio Gang will also be in charge of the landscaping for the museum, which makes sense given Gang’s focus on incorporating sustainability and natural elements in her work.

Gang said in a release from the Lucas Museum announcing her involvement.

We are excited to build upon our current work and collaborate to create a seamless transition between the Museum Campus and Northerly Island,” said Ms. Gang, a MacArthur Fellow. “In keeping with the Northerly Island ethos, our design goal will be to create a combined ecological and urban habitat.”

The Lucas Museum tapped Beijing-based MAD Architects to design the museum, while Chicago’s VOA Associates, best known for designing Roosevelt University’s vertical campus, will be the executive architect and oversee implementing the building’s design. MAD Architects founder Ma Yansong will design the museum himself and said, “It is a gift to be able to design the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art in a city so rich with architectural history.”

George Lucas, whose extensive personal art collection will be housed in the museum, said, “We are bringing together some of the top architects in the world to ensure that our museum experience begins long before a visitor ever enters the building. I am thrilled with the architectural team’s vision for the building and the surrounding green space. I look forward to presenting our design to the Chicago community.”