Becoming Los Angeles: Stories of Nature and Culture
Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County, Los Angeles, CA.
Exploring the growth of Los Angeles over the course of five centuries, and illustrating the interconnection of the city’s ecological and cultural histories, Becoming Los Angeles brings its history to life through compelling stories and ancient and historic artifacts — objects made and used by Native Americans, colonists, and settlers; rancheros, citrus growers and oil barons; captains of industry, boosters, and radicals; filmmakers, innovators, and more.
This 14,000-square-foot exhibition, installed in a suite of four adjacent galleries in NHM’s newly renovated 1913 and 1920s buildings, is the largest in the Museum. It tells its stories in six major sections: Los Angeles and the region at the time of Spanish contact; the Spanish Mission Era; the Mexican Rancho Era; the early American Period; the emergence of a new American city in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; the Great Depression and World War II, to the present.
LRLA worked closely with the in-house team at NHM and the projects' creative partners to provide creative concepts to shape the exhibit narrative, physical environment, graphics and interactive media. In addition LRLA developed a customized approach to content development that facilitated a groundbreaking design process, content coordination and project management of content throughout the project – from ideation and initial content mapping through copy writing, editing and approvals.
This project was created in collaboration with NHM, Cinnabar, AdamsMorioka, First Circle Lighting Design, Second Story Interactive Studio and Buro Happold.
